


A wishful Merlin romance

by Mersgath



Category: Doctor Who, Merlin (TV)
Genre: F/M, Wishful Thinking
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-14
Updated: 2014-11-18
Packaged: 2018-02-13 04:52:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 33,996
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2137668
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mersgath/pseuds/Mersgath
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dana wakes up in the world of Camelot, finding herself to be Morgana's target</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> In was daydreaming about Merlin so...

“ ** _In a world where there is so much pain in reality, there is that one place I can always escape to where no one else will ever find me at all… but little did I know that my imagination would come to reality…_** ”

\- Dana Ortiz -

In the country Australia, where nothing exciting ever happened and all the snobs that people known inhabited, lived a foreigner named Dana. She lived in an average town of Orange where she barely had any friends, except for a fair good few. Despite the fact that she knew that her friends would always be there for her, she was not always so happy. A boy she used to love never wanted to admit to her that he left her because of her appearance, he said things behind her back, he had done things he shouldn’t have, he broke more promises than she did… and of course, his new lover was Australian-born and uneducated. Technically, that was all she could think about in those days. She attended the Catholic High School of James Sheahan, where most of the people who went there didn’t really get along with her. After all, she was unique and strange… and she was certainly not white, of course meaning European or Australian, which is technically not a racist comment. She was an average short Asian girl with light-tanned skin, black hair that fell to her neck, wore a navy blazer, a white shirt and a black skirt. Her feet and legs were covered with hideous navy long socks and old black leather shoes. That, ladies and gentlemen, was a demonstration of a girl who was nowhere near popular. She would always have delusions every step that she took; of course her dream was always to be a woman with creative skills. But unfortunately, no one, not a young man would truly love her for who she was, which would be one of her biggest wishes in life and would dream of finding love, even though she was not as desperate as she was before. All Dana could ever think about was the mistakes that she had done throughout her life. As she walked home, she had always done the same thing: think and daydream about impossible things that would never happen. She would often watch her favorite movies or TV shows, especially her all-time favorite show “Merlin” to get away from her emotional pain. That show had always been there for her when she was filled with joy and also when her heart was broken throughout her teenage years. That was the only thing that would relieve her from her regrets and the emotional pain she would suffer from. However… that was not just an ordinary day. Little did she know she was going on an adventure she would never forget.

It all started with a path that led Dana home from the school Bus. It was a typical Tuesday where she would walk from the Bus stop to her home. All she could ever think about was how happy she was for getting all of her assessment tasks done and the coming of the Christmas holidays and the start of Summer in Australia. However, she was still sad about how the boy she knew didn’t turn out to be the sort of person she thought he was, but one that kept leading her on into a dead end. But never mind the boy; this is a story about Dana’s new adventure! As she was thinking of bizarre thoughts, he kept pacing straight ahead into the lonely Icely Road, right to her house. She then finally arrived. Dana took out the key, unlocked the door and opened it. As she went inside, dumped her bag in the living room and headed towards the kitchen to eat her snack, she saw something unusual about her home: there was an ugly Manticore standing at the kitchen bench. The creature looked like a reptile with a scaly thin collar, ugly feet with claws and a long scorpion tail, which was ready to strike any living thing that was on its way. Dana looked around the kitchen and then looked back at the creature. She could not believe that such an animal appeared out of nowhere. She widened her eyes as the Manticore growled at her. Dana shook and spoke out loud to herself:

“Oh great! What kind of a creature is this?”

The creature growled again and answered her “I’m a Manticore you silly girl!”

Dana could not believe her eyes and ears, she saw a Manticore talk to her. A Manticore talked to her… and such creature does not even exist. ‘How could this happen? This creature doesn’t even exist!’ thought Dana to herself as her eyeballs looked like they were about to pop. Then, the Manticore jumped down to the ground and was about to attack the girl. The child screamed and ran out of her house. She opened the door and the locked it, ran out of the house, then stood in the middle of the road and looked around. She was standing in front of the notorious Canobolas High School, which there was no way that she would go there for hiding; something worse could happen in there. There were also many homes where she could go to for refuge. However, she chose not to disturb her neighbors as it would be far too rude. Then, she looked back at her house and the Manticore ran towards her and jumped at her direction. She could not believe that even though she locked the door, the Manticore was still chasing her, and she did not know how it got out of the house. Then, without a second thought, Dana turned to her left and a car hit her hard on her stomach. The girl’s stomach bounced on the vehicle and spit had spread all over the window. The car stopped and the girl collapsed to her knees and fainted. People ran towards her and rumbled on with panicking words. She felt weak and heard muffled voices surrounding her. She kept blinking and felt like death was taking her. For some utter reason, she also saw a statue of an Angel standing behind the crowd. Dana wondered what it was. Scared as she would be, she blinked. Then, the statue was next to one of the people in the crowd and gave a frightful glare of violence. Dana kept gulping as the angel stared right into her. Dana wondered whether the people could see the statue… or maybe it was just her scared imagination since she was at the age where people would still fear death. The angel glared at her, as if it were about to attack her and Dana kept swallowing cold thin air. As she tried not to blink, all the muted voices kept talking around her and her vision became blurred. She closed her eyes and her breath left her body.


	2. Chapter 2

Dana woke up from that hit she received on the road, and she couldn’t remember anything about the statue she saw. That vehicle must have hit her very hard for her to pass out. She could even conclude that the driver was speeding. Her eyes kept blinking as she looked around. It seemed like she was inside an old small room. She sat up and gazed around. All she could see in the room was a cupboard, a chair and a desk. She didn’t remember being in such a room. This is not a room in the hospital, she thought, and it certainly doesn’t exist in my house. She looked down at the wooden floor and saw a thick book, which she had no idea what would the contents be, and she dared not to touch the object since it was not her property. She stood up and stretched. Then, Dana realized that she did not have her uniform on. In fact, she was wearing clothes that were far too big for her small size, not to mention she was also bare-footed. Dana was as embarrassed as ever as she took the long blanket and covered herself with it as the garments she had on were falling off. Then, she opened the door and got out of the bedroom… and her eyes could not believe it.

“Oh, you’re awake!” said an old man.

Dana fell in shock, dropped the blanket and widened her eyes as she stared at him. He was a chubby old man who had silver wavy hair that went down to his neck, had blue eyes and wore a long tunic that fell down to his feet. She could not believe her eyes. The old man who was approaching her was Gaius!

‘ _What is Gaius doing here?_ ’ wondered a shocked Dana. The man stood in front of her and patted her shoulder as he said:

“You’ve been asleep for two long hours! Are you alright?”

Dana nodded as she gave him a wary stare. She did not say a word as the man smiled at her.

“Merlin got so worried about you when he saw you in the forest!” spoke Gaius.

 _Merlin?_ Dana thought to herself. She seemed as surprised as she could ever be.

“M-Merlin?” spoke the girl for the first time in that moment.

“Oh! You do speak! I was beginning to fear that you couldn’t!” said Gaius.

Dana looked around and saw the old books that were stacked in the shelves and some that were placed on top of the desk, the herbs and medicines that were in crystal flasks along with little bottles and vials, and the pieces of paper that laid there at the dining table and then stared back at Gaius. There was a familiarity of the place that she couldn’t point out.

“Where am I?” asked she.

“Camelot!”

Dana fell bamboozled as she heard the one word. That was the most impossible thing that has ever happened in her life and it did not seem logical that she would end up in that great realm after getting hit by a vehicle. She would love watching the “Merlin” series, but she never thought that it would ever come to life, and certainly not in her dreams. Dana dropped her mouth as she started shouting.

“Camelot?!”

“Yes, you’re in Camelot. Is there something wrong?”

“Of course there is something wrong! I remember being in my house. I was chased by a Manticore and then I got hit by a bloody car!”

“A car? What is that?”

Dana fell silent and her eyes gazed back and forth as she tried to answer Gaius’ question.

“…It is a vehicle. You drive on it and…”

“Ah! Child…”said Gaius as he patted her shoulder again “You must have been hit pretty hard after that fall.”

“…fall?”

“Yes my dear” confirmed Gaius.

Dana did not understand what was happening to her. Her eyes moved around as they gazed the physician’s room. She then looked back at Gaius who stood there concerned.

“…Explain to me how I got here” demanded Dana.

“Merlin was doing errands for me, and one of them was picking some rare herbs I needed. He told me that he saw you climbing one of the trees in the forest and you fell! You got him so anxious!” answered Gaius.

Dana slowly nodded. She was still in shock about the whole situation. Apparently Merlin found her climbing a tree and brought her into the castle… that was something that she would have to think about since she didn’t remember that, and it certainly reminded her of childhood fairy tales that she would hear of back when she lived in Europe. Strange men carrying beautiful princesses to their fortresses, rescuing them from evil… it all seemed so childish in her thoughts. But this was a different situation. This wasn’t about a prince rescuing her from a strange place, it’s about her being in a place she had only known on TV. Dana shook off her head and looked at the man with a dazed gaze. Then, she looked down and herself and asked:

“Whose clothes am I wearing?”

“Ah, those are Merlin’s.”

Dana looked up and down herself and then back to Gaius as her brown eyes widened.

“No wonder they keep falling off! I’m too small for these.” Gaius laughed at her words and Dana stood there in a distraught manner. She did not like being laughed at by people, especially if they are strangers. She kept tugging and pulling the clothes she was wearing as she exclaimed to the old man:

“It’s not funny Gaius! I’m a girl!”

“Ha, ha, hah yes sorry about that. Are you sure you’re feeling alright?”

“Yes actually, never better” said the girl sarcastically.

Then, the door opened and a boy came inside. He was tall, and pale with dark hair and blue eyes. He wore a blue shirt, a red scarf, a brown suede jacket with long burnt umber pants, and he wore boots that covered his feet. It was no doubt that the boy who just came in was Merlin. Dana looked at him with a stunned glare and her mouth fell open.

“Oh hello! So you are alive!”

“…yes I am” responded the dazed girl as she gave a nod.

“Why were you climbing on the tree?”

Dana’s mouth dropped as she tried to answer the question. She looked at Gaius whose eyes were darting and insisting and kept nodding his head, then she looked back at Merlin. She stammered and tried to think of something to say, but unfortunately, she had to tell him a half-truth.

“…I can’t even remember why I climbed it!”

“Mmm… well, you’re best to be careful next time you do that” advised Merlin with a grin.

Dana nodded as she gazed at him. She stared right into him and something made her feel an afterglow. There was something about him that made her like him and felt secure at his presence. She didn’t know what it was but she couldn’t stop looking into his gentle blue eyes and his friendly smile. She kept blinking and shook her head to toss her thoughts away. Then, Merlin looked down and said with an awkward voice:

“…My pants just fell to the floor.”

Dana looked down to the floor and realized that she only had the shirt on, which went down to her knees. She tried picking the pants up but tripped and fell to the ground. Both Gaius and Merlin laughed at her as she stood up, took her feet of the big pants and snatched them.

“It’s not funny you two! I may be clumsy but these are too big!”

Then, both men stopped laughing. Dana was so annoyed that she had no idea what she was talking about anymore. She felt molested and infuriated about the fact that two men had laughed at her for her lumbering actions. Dana did not know whether she could even stand them at all since they thought her trip was amusing. After that moment, Dana calmed down and another thought stroke her; she realized something was not logical to her. If she had Merlin’s clothes on… then something must have happened to her school uniform.

“Hang on, where’s my school uniform!?”

Merlin and Gaius gave a strange stare as they looked at each other and then back at her.

“…what’s a school uniform?” asked Merlin.

Dana gave out a shocked glare at them.

“Haven’t you ever heard of a school uniform?”

Merlin and Gaius shook their heads and Dana rolled her eyes. Of course, she had forgotten that she had woken up in the middle ages after an accident. It was so obvious that they didn’t know anything about school uniforms. She then paced around as she was trying to say something so they could give her the answers she seeks. She stopped walking around and kept thinking about what to say. Merlin and Gaius stood there while they waited for the girl to speak. Then, Dana knew what words to express so they could answer her question.

“Alright, I will say this in simpler words: where are my clothes?”

“Oh! Those black clothes? That’s a school uniform?” asked Merlin.

“Yes! And they’re mine!”

“Not to worry about that dear, they are in Merlin’s cupboard, but Guinevere and the maids had to change your clothes since people in the village thought you were some sort of magical harmful creature. Merlin had let them borrow some of his clothes and that’s why you have them” answered Gaius.

 _Oh marvelous! People thought I was a magical harmful creature_ , Dana thought.

Although she was annoyed about the fact that people assumed things about her, Dana was grateful that her uniform was inside Merlin’s cupboard and she would be able to recover it.

“Oh good! For a moment I thought I lost them!” exclaimed the girl in relief.

“Yes, Arthur almost threw them away, but I saved them because I thought you might need it again and so I told him that I would keep it!” said Merlin.

“Well thank you” said Dana started grinning.

“You’re welcome.”

Both smiled and stared at each other and Gaius gave an uncomfortable grin as he stood there.

Merlin gazed at her and felt the same way as the girl did. He felt that same afterglow. Something about her made him like her. He didn’t know what it was, but it was giving him the feeling of security. Since Dana was new, he saw the chance to make a new friend in the castle. It certainly had been a while since he had talked to anyone at all about his personal life, especially since Lancelot died, who was extremely close to him, and so he had found the perfect opportunity for a new friendship. As both stared at each other, Gaius kept smiling awkwardly and looked at both of them.

“I’ll leave you two alone” said Gaius and left the room.

Both grinned at each other as they stood there in the room and didn’t take notice of Gaius. Merlin walked towards her and Dana just stood still, not knowing what to do. As he stood in front of her, Dana felt uncomfortable as her head went up to his chest. She had never felt so short in her life! She kept blinking as she drove that thought away from her head. Merlin was smiling at her and asked:

“Would you like me to show you around the castle?”

“Oh yes, that would be lovely” answered Dana.

“And if we have time… maybe also the village?”

“Why of course!” said Dana in response.“I don’t even know what it looks like!”

“Alright then, but first we must get you some clothes. I can tell that you don’t like my shirt.”

Dana’s smile faded. She could never have felt so embarrassed in front of a boy, and she wasn’t aware that she kept tugging the garment, although Merlin did. The girl stopped jerking the long shirt and looked back at him and answered:

“Oh no, it’s not that I don’t like it. I just think that it’s too big for me.”

“I can see that. That’s why we’re going to get you some new ones.”

“Oh… alright” said Dana shyly.

“Now, shall we go?” asked Merlin politely.

“Of course” answered Dana happily. “I’ll just grab my shoes. Do you know where they are?”

“In my cupboard” answered Merlin as he jerked his pointing finger at the door towards him.

Then, Dana ran up to the boy’s room and turned to his cupboard. She opened it and saw her black uniform tidily folded next to her black old leather shoes. She snatched them and placed her feet inside them. Then, she got out of her room and nodded to him. Merlin gave out his arm to Dana and she took it and both of them walked out of the court Physician’s room.


	3. Chapter 3

Merlin walked Dana through the whole castle as he showed her all of the rooms. He showed her the Council Chamber, which is where the king holds his meetings and the banqueting hall where he would also hold his feasts and celebrations, he showed her the throne room and the training yard where King Arthur and his knights would practice for battle… not to mention that she had already seen Merlin’s bedroom and the Court Physician’s room, and the boy showed most of the important areas which she would have to remember. The moment when they walked into the kitchen, both Merlin and Dana got nagged by the old croon of a cook, which made them feel irritated. The cook rambled on about “trespassing” in the kitchen for a long half an hour while her fat body bounced in the thin air at the sound of her unsophisticated and annoying voice. While the woman kept talking, Merlin and Dana gave each other annoyed looks and had the same thoughts: they both wanted to get out of the kitchen and be freed from the woman’s ‘lecture’, since it was obvious to them that she only thought about the food she had been cooking and would assume that they would come and eat them. Having enough from the cook’s voice, Merlin whispered a few words, his eyes gleamed fire and then a pan flew from its place and hit the fat woman on the head, leaving her unconscious for a bit. Dana looked amazed and Merlin smiled. After a long time of nagging from the cook, they both got out of the kitchen.

*            *           *

Then, they both arrived in Queen Guinevere and King Arthur’s room. It had a big tidy bed with lots of pillows, and judging by the size of it, Dana assumed it was a queen-sized bed in terms of contemporary English. She could see the area where Arthur (or Guinevere) would dress, and the cupboards where they would both keep their robes and garments. Dana smiled in amazement of watching the Warlock perform his magic and then turned to Merlin, who looked into Guinevere’s cupboard, and said:

“You have magic.”

“I do actually.”

Dana smiled at him and approached him. “That’s very amazing!” exclaimed Dana.

“Oh it’s nothing, I was born with it” said Merlin in a low voice.

Dana stared at him while he looked deep into Guinevere’s cupboard. To her eyes, it seemed that Merlin was bothered by an unspoken matter. Since she was in a curious mood, she asked:

“You don’t seem happy Merlin. Are you alright?”

“Oh yes, I am fine. It’s just that no one, except for Gaius, really knows that I have magic, and nobody’s supposed to know… and now you know too” answered Merlin.

“Ah, I won’t say a word if you wish so.”

Merlin gazed at her and nodded with gratitude. Then, he continued speaking.

“Magic is forbidden in the walls of Camelot, so I have to hide it.”

“Oh… that’s a shame” said Dana, pretending not to know anything about Camelot’s history.

“But even if it doesn’t look like it there’s hope, one day magic will be allowed again.”

Dana smiled at him and Merlin did the same thing to her. They both stared at each other and unknowingly got closer to each other. However, they both stopped and stood as they were and Dana said with a shaky voice:

“Let’s just look into this cupboard!”

“Yes, that’s a great idea!” said an awkward Merlin.

Then, both turned to the inside of the cupboard and looked for some clothes. They went through Guinevere’s dresses and Dana fell inside the cabinet and yelped. Merlin turned to the girl, held her waist with both hands, lifted her up and got her out of the cupboard. He awkwardly looked down at his hands and then back at the girl as he took them off.

“Are you alright?” asked Merlin.

“Yes, I’m alright” answered the girl.

Then, they heard a cough, and both turned around to see a man with fair skin and blonde hair named Arthur and Queen Guinevere who had dark skin, dark brown hair and a gentle smile that could make anyone fall in love with her. The royal couple were standing right in front of them while Merlin and Dana looked at each other uncomfortably and then looked back at them.

“Merlin, I’m hoping for your own sake that you have a good explanation for this” said a serious Arthur.

Merlin dropped his mouth open, looked at Dana and then back at Arthur.

“Yes, I do have a good explanation for this!” assured Merlin.

“So… tell me, what you are doing in Guinevere’s cupboard?” asked Arthur.

“I-I was looking for some clothes for this girl to wear!” said Merlin in a funny voice.

Arthur widened his blue eyes in mirth and disbelief, while Guinevere gave an amused smile and Dana chuckled. Merlin blushed a bit as his eyes kept turning to the short girl that stood next to him. Arthur then smiled as he turned to Dana and said:

“Ah! So you are alive then!”

“Y-yes, your majesty” answered Dana politely.

“No need for that. Call me Arthur” said the young king as he then turned to Guinevere. “This is my wife Guinevere. You can call her Gwen if you wish to do so.”

“Oh please," Dana waved her hands a little nervously. "I don’t want to be rude your majesty.”

“Alright then, you’re a very courteous girl, aren’t you?”

Dana nodded as the young King smiled at her.

“What is your name?”

“Oh! Umm…" The girl scratched her head."My name is Dana.”

“Dana…” said Arthur as she nodded.

Then, he gave a strange glare around the room, stared back at the girl and said:

“that’s a very unusual name.”

“Yes, well… that’s what people call me” said Dana and gave out her funny grin.

“Very well Dana, Guinevere will help you find some clothes” said Arthur as he then turned to Merlin and gave him a humorous scowl. “And God forbid Merlin please let the girl have some space.”

Merlin gave the king a funny glare as his eyes shook a bit.

“What did I do?” asked an irritated Merlin.

"I saw you two… getting really close” teased Arthur with a grin and patted his shoulder.

The man walked away from his room and Merlin stood there gawkily as he rolled his eyes. He looked at Arthur and then glared back at Guinevere and Dana.

“I’ll just be with Arthur if you need me” said the boy.

Dana smiled and thanked the boy. Merlin grinned back, bowed and walked towards the door. When he was getting out of the room, he kept giving glances at her and his face kept turning red. Dana stared at Merlin and then turned to Guinevere.

“Well, you seem to have made a new friend quickly” remarked the queen.

“Yes I have actually” answered Dana.

Guinevere stroked the girl’s hair and gave out her tender smile.

“Let’s start looking for some clothes, shall we?” spoke Guinevere.

“Alright” said Dana as she grinned. Then, they both walked another direction and left the room.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arthur finds that Merlin feels a spark of attraction to the new girl while Dana finds herself thinking of Merlin

Merlin kept smiling as he stared up at the sky. He didn’t know why but he felt happier than he ever was before. He felt like flying as he looked at the bird that soared. Merlin closed his eyes, stretched his arms out and enjoyed the fresh air in freedom. He had never felt that way for a very long time and he had no idea why, but he liked that feeling and wanted to run until his feet were worn out and fell to the ground. As he took pleasure in the atmosphere, his moment of peace and quiet got destroyed by an attacking Arthur, who held a mace and hit Merlin on the shoulder.

“GAAAH! What was that for?” asked an annoyed Merlin.

“You’re supposed to be helping me in training, not pretend to be a soaring bird!” exclaimed the young king.

Then, Merlin looked around him and realized that he was in the training yard. He kept gazing around and the knights of Camelot were staring at him. Merlin felt really embarrassed as he coughed and turned to Arthur.

“Are you alright Merlin? You seem like you just drank a lot of ale!” ragged Gwaine with a loud voice.

“Oh yes, I’m fine!” answered Merlin.

“Are you sure?”

“…Yes!” exclaimed Merlin as he extended his hands out in embarrassment.

“Alright” said Gwaine as he walked towards Sir Leon and Sir Percival, who were laughing at the boy.

Merlin awkwardly turned back to Arthur, who stood there suspiciously. Merlin did not like the way the young monarch stared at him and raised his eyebrow.

“Are you alright Merlin? You seem to look… drunk” said Arthur.

“I’m not drunk!” yelled a mortified Merlin.

Arthur put his hand up, indicating him to calm down and placed his mace on the ground and stared at him again.

“Come on Merlin, what’s wrong? You’ve been really quiet since we started practicing.”

“N-nothing, nothing’s wrong” answered a stammering Merlin.

“Did something bad happen?” asked Arthur.

“…No” answered Merlin.

“Is it that you want to go to the tavern?” questioned Arthur.

“No” said Merlin.

Arthur giggled a bit and asked teasingly: “Is it the girl?”

Merlin dropped his mouth opened and stood there uncomfortably.

“What?” his voice darted in doubt.

“You like her, don’t you?” mocked Arthur.

“…No?” replied an annoyed and reddened Merlin.

“Did you hear that boys? Apparently Merlin likes our new guest!” teased Gwaine.

Sir Percival and Sir Leon laughed and Arthur joined in. He then looked at Merlin again, who gave an irritated stare, and assured him:

“Merlin, it’s alright to be an infatuated fool. There’s nothing wrong with that. I am also like that with Guinevere, but it is quite so soon to like her...”

“No, I am not infatuated with her, and you certainly are a big dollophead!” exclaimed an infuriated and blushing Merlin.

“Hey Arthur!” called Gwaine.

Arthur turned to him and nodded, giving him an indication that he had heard him.

“What does this guest even look like?” asked the man.

“Well… how do I describe her? She’s extremely short, she has black hair and very nice colored skin… and all I can say is that she is very small” answered Arthur.

“How small?” asked Sir Leon.

“You will see her tomorrow. I’ll present her to you” said Arthur.

“Maybe she’s small because it is an indication to you that you’re getting fat!” muttered Merlin.

Sir Percival and Sir Leon hooted at his comment and Arthur turned around to face Merlin. He gave an angry and serious look at him and exclaimed:

"I am not fat!”

“Yes you are…” murmured Merlin in annoyance.

“So Arthur, what is the guest’s name?” asked Sir Percival.

“…Her name is Dana” answered Arthur as he calmed himself down and turned to the tall man.

The three knights gave out bizarre glares at each other and then looked back at the young king. Arthur shrugged his shoulders and Merlin rolled his eyes as he stood there. He knew by the looks of the knights that they were going to start a big and pointless discussion about one small topic that didn’t matter.

“That’s a strange name” commented Sir Leon.

“I agree” said Gwaine.

Sir Percival nodded and the men started muttering at each other about the odd name of ‘Dana’. Arthur joined in but Merlin was still standing there, and ignored the men’s voices. He looked up at the sky again and smiled. His feelings were as unstoppable as the wind that blew towards him and he stretched out his arms to sense the chilling breeze that came towards him. For some unknown reason, he kept smiling at the sound of the girl’s strange name every time one of the knights would mention it. Was he really already infatuated with her like Arthur said? Did Cupid struck him with one of his arrows and made him feel like a joggling fool? Merlin did not know, but he felt a deep contentment inside him and his heart would not stop beating every time he heard her name. While he was breathing in the breeze, he could hear one of the knight’s comments.

“I don’t like that name, it’s so odd!” remarked one of them.

“I like her name” disagreed the besotted swinging clown.

Arthur and the knights turned to see Merlin wavering and swaying himself back and forth in the training yard and so they laughed at him. They had no idea what the happy manservant was doing and so, they changed their topic and started talking about him instead.

“Look, he’s enjoying himself the summer breeze” mentioned a cockling Gwaine.

“At least he has something better to do” said Sir Percival.

“I’m thinking the same thing” said Sir Leon. “Can we join him?”

“NO!” shouted the other men.

Sir Leon frowned in disappointment since he looked forward to do some erratic swaggering with the servant. Then, they turned to watch Merlin make a fool out of himself with his swinging. They all gave him funny stares as they all wondered what was the matter with him. Then, Merlin looked back at them and saw their glares. As embarrassed as a little reckless boy could be from his actions, he turned away to look at the sky again and whistled to disguise his funny actions. Arthur could not believe what he is seeing from his servant. ‘ _Has Merlin actually gone mad_?’ he wondered to himself. Then, he looked at the three knights, and gazed back at the uncomfortable fool who turned his back on them.

“Either he has spent too much time in the tavern, or he actually did become infatuated with the girl” commented Arthur out loud.

“Well who knows?” said Sir Leon as he chuckled a bit along with the knights.

Then, Merlin started spinning round and round again and fell onto the grass. Arthur and the knights kept watching a swaggering silly jester roll around the apple-smelling grass for the rest of their training practice. For them that was the most entertaining and best part of the day, and for Merlin’s it would be the most embarrassing and possibly one of the worst that he could ever remember.

 

 

*              *             *

 

Dana and Guinevere were looking for clothes in the governess’ old house. It seemed impossible to find some that would be Dana’s size. As Guinevere went through her clothes, she commented:

“I have to admit, you’re very small.”

“I am actually. So is my family” answered Dana.

Guinevere laughed a bit and Dana smiled. While the queen went through her old clothes, the girl found herself thinking about Merlin for some unknown reason. She seemed to be very curious about the kind chap and so, she wanted to know more about him.

“So, tell me about Merlin. What is he like?” asked Dana.

“Merlin? He’s a good man. Extremely loyal, a very fierce friend, he had always been there for Arthur… and for some reason my husband seems to think that he goes to the tavern a lot” remarked Guinevere.

Dana grinned and giggled. “Really? Merlin? He doesn’t look that that type.”

“Yes, I agree” said Guinevere.

Dana kept smiling and then stared at the door of Queen Guinevere’s old house. Dana’s calm eyes darted at the sunlight as she gave out a serene smile at the glow. The woman stared at the girl and asked:

“What do you think of him?” Dana turned to face Guinevere.

“Oh! I think he’s nice” answered Dana. “He was being kind to me so far... Funnily enough, he keeps staring at me.”

“Ha, ha hah, well you are quite pretty."

"Why thank you!" Dana could not believe Guinevere complimented her.

Guinevere inclined her eyes a bit. "Do you happen to find him… handsome?” teased the gentle Guinevere.

Dana dropped her mouth open and blushed. She kept stammering as Merlin came into her mind. She did not know what to say to the queen of Camelot. Her eyes kept glaring around the room and then looked straight at the gentle woman. She had to think of a quick answer.

“…Maybe?” she blurted out doubtingly.

Guinevere laughed. “It’s alright Dana; you can say so if you want.”

Dana stood quietly for a moment. Her eyes looked at the door and then back at Guinevere. She gave out a big sigh and told what she thought.

“Alright, I do find him handsome. After all, it’s not as if I fancy him. I’ve just met him.”

“That’s true, but even if you did I wouldn’t have minded, but of course it would have been so quick. He’s a nice boy and I think he deserves a love of his own” said Guinevere.

Dana nodded awkwardly and thought about Merlin. She found him to be the kindest man that she had ever met in her life. Her heart seemed to beat fast when she thought of him. She would have liked the idea of being with Merlin but Dana kept on thinking about the age difference there would be between her and the boy; and of course she had just met him, she couldn’t just ‘woo’ a kind stranger. Guinevere kept gazing tenderly at her and smiled. Dana looked back at the woman and grinned as she had Merlin in her mind.

“So, how old are you?” asked the gentle woman.

“Oh, I’m seventeen years old” replied Dana.

“Seventeen?” she asked and shook her head a bit in disbelief. “You look younger than that.”

“…My mother and father also looked younger in other people’s gazes” remarked Dana.

Guinevere gave out her warm laughter and said:

“I’m sure Merlin wouldn’t mind being with a seventeen year old girl who is as pretty as you.”

Dana’s face turned into a deep red. Every time Guinevere mentioned the servant’s name, she could not help but think of him. The girl did not know what hit her, and what made her feel like that, but her heart wouldn’t stop beating for him. Guinevere stared at her, caressed the girl’s hair and questioned:

“Would you happen to like him?”

Dana widened her eyes a bit as she blushed even more. She could not believe that her new friend could possibly come up with a preposterous idea. She had just met the man, and despite her feelings, she had to deny them.

“…No?” Dana denied.

“Are you sure?” teased Guinevere.

“I’m very sure” assured the girl.

Guinevere nodded and turned back to her old cabinet. She kept looking for some clothes that Dana could borrow. As the girl looked into another direction, she would wonder about Merlin. Would he feel the same way that she does? Would he notice a young girl like her in that manner? But earlier on the day he was extremely close to her and enjoyed the company. He kept staring and smiling at her. Could it be all possible? Could something special ever happen between the two of them despite the age difference? Could anything happen at all between both of them? No, none of that would never happen to her. She thought it would be poppycock. Dana shook her head, threw that thought away and turned back to Guinevere who exclaimed to herself in excitement.

“I have found you some clothes that are your size. I hope their will do.”

The woman handed her some garments and some shoes. Dana smiled when she saw them. She saw a beige dress, a belt and a dark brown suede vest, and with them, she also stared at the brown suede boots the lady handed her. She took them and thanked the queen. The woman nodded and then, both got out of Guinevere’s old house as they walked with the new clothes that Dana was going to borrow for her stay. All she needed was a place to sleep at for the night. She was sure that she will find somewhere comfortable for her stay, and so, Dana went back to the Court Physician’s room for the time being.


	5. Chapter 5

At the end of the day, it was a nice peaceful evening where Merlin and Gaius sat at the dining table after a day of hard work. However, they were both waiting for the guest to come out for dinner which made it so different from their usual evening. Gaius sat still while Merlin could not stop tapping the table as he beamed at himself with his biggest grin. Gaius gave him a funny gaze as he stared at the boy and asked:

“Are you alright Merlin?”

Merlin looked up at him and answered, “I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?”

“…Yes” assured the boy.

Gaius shrugged his shoulder and glared at the table. Then, he looked back at his apprentice, who kept pattering on the dining table. Deep inside his head, Gaius laughed at Merlin, but he was smiling widely on the outside. The young chap looked up at the old man and gave out a dazed look.

“What?!” exclaimed the man.

“Merlin, you seem to be happier than usual. Are you sure you’re not infatuated with her like Arthur said?”

“Yes…” answered an uncertain Merlin.

Gaius’ eyes were insistent towards the boy. Merlin shrugged his shoulders as he glared at Gaius and said:

“I don’t know, actually.”

“Ah!” exclaimed Gaius.

“I don’t know what it is Gaius, but something about her… makes me like her. I find her interesting.”

“Well, she does seem a bit mysterious for today and I’m sure she’ll talk a bit more tomorrow” suggested Gaius.

Merlin then smiled again. “Yes, maybe it is that, and I hope I get to know her better.” Gaius and Merlin grinned at each other and laughed.

Then, the door of Merlin’s room creaked open and both men turned around. They saw Dana coming towards them, and then she stood right in front of them. Gaius and Merlin stared at her as she seemed confused. She did not know what to do and pointed her small thumb at Merlin’s room.

“I have finished putting my things inside your wardrobe for the time being” Dana confirmed.

“Oh! Great!” said Merlin as he gave out his awkward grin. “Thanks for letting me know.”

Dana smiled and then looked at Gaius.

“I believe I should go and get my dinner elsewhere” spoke Dana.

“Oh, no, no, do eat with us!” said Gaius.

“…But where will I sit?” asked Dana gawkily.

The old man’s face turned to Merlin and he cockled inside his head. Then, he looked back at the girl with a humorous face.

“You can sit next to Merlin” responded Gaius.

After hearing those words, Merlin looked up at Gaius and blushed, who felt embarrassed and excited at the same time. Dana nodded awkwardly and then agreed with the old man. She approached the boy and sat next to him. They both sat there, stared at each other a grinned. Then, both of them turned to Gaius, who took out two plates of broth and chicken, and then a big loaf of bread. Dana sat there uncomfortably as she looked at both men’s meals and stared at Gaius.

“I-I don’t have a plate” said the girl uneasily.

“Oh it’s alright! I’ll share with you” answered a reddened Merlin.

Dana stared at Merlin and thanked him. He nodded awkwardly and then shared his meal with her. Gaius gave out his amused smile as he kept laughing inside his head. Merlin and Dana kept taking turns as the old man sat there and ate his dinner and enjoyed watching an embarrassed Merlin feeding a woman. He could not believe that something like that would have ever happened in his life. It was as amusing as it could ever be as it seemed that in the old man’s eyes, Merlin gave irrational glares. Since the old man decided that the young people needed space, Gaius stood up and said:

“I think it’s best that I leave you two alone right now. Dana, you can take my sit here if you wish to do so.”

“Oh no!” said Dana as she turned red “I’m fine here. In fact, I like sitting next to Merlin.”

Gaius widened his eyes and nodded and Merlin kept smiling inelegantly at her. ‘ _Why the hell did I just say that_?’ thought Dana to herself as she looked at both men awkwardly. Then, she gave out her gawky smile and said:

“Actually, maybe I might take your sit if that’s alright.”

“No!” blurted out Merlin. “I’d like you to stay… sited… here.” Dana turned to the boy, who seemed to feel awkward.

Gaius chuckled and muttered to himself “Oh to be young and infatuated…”

Then, Gaius left with his dish and sat on one of the benches as both of them stayed sited next to each other. Merlin then turned to the chicken and broth and tried to eat it but instead, he spilled the food on his shirt. Gaius hooted at himself as he watched both young people interacting with each other and ate his meal. Merlin looked at himself and then at Dana. He blushed even more as he tried to find a way to clean his shirt. The young foreigner took a napkin, which laid on the table, and stared at Merlin and cleaned his blouse. Then, Gaius turned around and focused on his dinner. Dana kept cleaning his shirt and Merlin’s cheeks burned red as he could feel her so close to him. He unconsciously came nearer as the girl tried to take out the spill from his shirt. After finishing, she put down the napkin on the table and stared back at him. They both sat still and looked at each other. Dana kept blinking shyly while Merlin froze. His heart kept beating even faster and couldn’t speak a word. The girl smiled at him and Merlin did the same as he thanked her.

“No need for that Merlin. I was just sort of returning a favor. After all, you have been really kind to me.”

“…it’s the least I could do” remarked Merlin as he gave her a tender smile.

Dana beamed shyly and looked down at the seat. Then, unknowingly, Merlin lifted the girl’s chin soothingly. Dana looked at him and she could see his gentle smile slowly fading and his eyes looked at her warmly. She did not know what it was, but she could feel that Merlin was coming even closer to her. Her heart kept beating fast as she slowly approached him. As their lips were almost touching, the door suddenly opened and both Dana and Merlin turned around. Gaius turned to the direction both youngsters looked at and saw Arthur standing there giving a funny glare at Merlin.

“Good evening sire” greeted Gaius. Arthur turned to Gaius to greet him back.

“Good evening Gaius.”

Then, he turned to face the young girl. Dana and Merlin stared at each other and then back at the king. Arthur wanted to give out a big laugh, but instead, he gave out a big suspicious smile.

“I just came here to let you know that tomorrow you will meet the knights of Camelot. Is it alright if you come to the training yard with Merlin?” asked Arthur.

“Oh, more than fine… actually” answered Dana awkwardly.

Then, the king turned to the boy and commented “Oh, sorry about disturbing your constant wooing Merlin, but that sort of thing doesn’t suit you.”

Merlin blushed and Dana kept staring at the king. Arthur gave out a little mirth as he turned to the girl again.

“Would you like to find another room which would be more suitable for you?”

“Oh no, I’m alright here. I’m sure there’s enough space for me to sleep in.”

Arthur raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure you won’t be scared by Merlin?”

Merlin widened his eyes in fury and tightened his lips together, trying to hold his tongue. The servant boy felt like insulting the king at an instant but got stopped by Dana’s little laughter as she answered:

“I’ll be alright. Merlin has been really nice to me.”

Arthur nodded uneasily and said “alright, I’ll see you both tomorrow.” Then, Arthur got out of the Physician’s room and closed the door.

Merlin stared at Dana gawkily and she did the same as she shrugged her shoulders.

 

*            *           *

After dinner, Merlin, Gaius and Dana sat around the dining table. They were all deciding how to arrange Dana’s sleeping area so she could be comfortable. Gaius and Merlin looked at each other and then back to Dana. She looked at them with gangling eyes as she tried to read their minds.

“What should we do?” asked the concerned old man.

Merlin then looked at Gaius and said “she can take my room. I’ll sleep here on the floor.”

Dana widened her eyes in shock and Gaius gave out a half-amused glare. Merlin gave out an awkward smile as he looked at them both. Dana could not accept that from a friend and she certainly found it rude to make someone give up their own room.

“No Merlin, I’ll sleep on the floor. I would feel like I’d be intruding.”

“You already ‘intruded’ my room” spoke Merlin back jokingly.

Dana looked at Gaius and then back at Merlin as she slowly grinned, and her smile turned into amusement. Gaius and the boy joined in the laughter as they kept sitting around the table. As the girl stopped giggling, she continued talking.

“No, really Merlin. It seems like I have used your room too much. Maybe I should get Arthur to arrange a bedroom for me.”

“No” said a grinning Merlin. “I’d like for you to sleep here comfortably.”

Dana smiled back. “But what about you?”

“Well, I’ll just be at the door if you need me.”

Dana’s smile faded as she could picture Merlin sleeping on one of the steps in front of his room. ‘ _The poor man_ ’ she thought. Then, she had another thought and then looked at him.

“Actually, I will do that. I’ll sleep on the floor” commented Dana.

“How about you two share the same bedroom and take turns as in who’s to sleep on the bed?” uttered Gaius.

Merlin and Dana suddenly looked at Gaius awkwardly. The old man smiled at them and the young people stared back at each other.

“I think that may sound fair” remarked Merlin.

Dana nodded happily and then both youngsters got out of their sits as they headed towards the bedroom. Gaius smiled at himself and got off the chair as he headed towards his bed. As they both got in, Dana could see that the room was already set. She could see that the bed was ready for her and right in front of the entrance was a cover for the floor, a pillow and a blanket. Dana felt excited yet bad as she assumed that Merlin was going to sleep on the floor, but then she remember that she will have to on the next day. The girl turned to Merlin and grinned as he did the same thing to her.

“So, what do you think?” asked Merlin.

“I think I can adjust to this” answered Dana.

Both Dana and Merlin chuckled a bit and stared at each other. Then, they both stared at the slumbering spots, calling them for their sleep. Then, the boy turned to Dana and asked:

“Are you going to sleep wearing my shirt?”

“…I hope you don’t mind. I don’t have anything else at the moment” Dana answered.

“No, not at all. I already have one. See?” said Merlin as he looked up and down at himself.

Then, Dana giggled and Merlin uttered:

“Go on, it’s sleeping time. You wouldn’t want me to keep you up, would you?”

“…I wouldn’t really mind if you talked to me, but yes I am a bit tired.”

“Ha hah, off to bed then” spoke the boy as he patted her head.

Dana chuckled, took off her black leather shoes and ran, jumped and landed on Merlin’s bed. The boy seemed to gain a lot of joy from the young girl as she smiled at him and greeted him goodnight. As he did the same, he crouched on the floor, laid down on the layer wrapping the floor, covered himself with a blanket and before he slept, he turned to his bed and saw Dana sleeping peacefully. The boy smiled at her and saw her hand sticking out of his cot. He laughed and then held her hand for a bit. He kissed it, held it gently and whispered:

“Sweet dreams.”

Then, he let go of her hand and turned himself to the direction of the door. Merlin’s eyes slowly shut as he sent himself into a deep sleep, where all his dreams with calm him down and the night would let him lay there peacefully.


	6. Chapter 6

Deep in the border of Camelot as the whole city slept, a lonely lady stood there with hatred filling her face. Her green eyes were cold like ice as they darted at the Citadel, her pale skin glimmered at the moonlight and her dark hair and shadowy gowns were as black as night. The lady sneered at herself as a boy with dark hair, bitter blue eyes and pale skin, approached her and stood next to her. He, along with the woman stared at the grand Kingdom of Camelot.

“Lady Morgana” he greeted.

“Hello Mordred” she saluted back. Both stood there silently as their eyes were looking at the mighty realm. Mordred stared at the woman, who asked him:

“Were you able to find the creature?”

“No my lady, the girl escaped.”

At the sound of the words, the woman’s eyes looked angrier than before. That was one phrase that she did not like to hear. Her scornful face turned to him as she asked:

“And how did this happen?”

“She was very lucky, my lady. But it is not as unfortunate as we would think.”

“Mordred, it is unfortunate! She could have proved useful to us! She’s not from this world!” she spat.

“Morgana, calm yourself. It is not the end yet. We can still get to her.”

“And how?!”

“She’s not that hard to find. I already know where she is.”

Morgana’s infuriating frown turned into a scary and serious expression as she stared at Mordred. The boy gazed at her solemnly as the Lady Morgana slowly smiled.

“So tell me, what happened to her?” asked she.

“As I tried to chase her, she climbed a tree and I cast a spell to make her fall. I was going to capture her but I had no choice, I had to hide. Someone else found her” answered Mordred.

“And do we know this person?”

“Yes we do my lady. It is one that you will love to see again.”

“Who?”

There was a silent moment as the boy gave a glare of hatred. He knew this man very well. He could not stand the mention of his name, and he hated him for the past events that have happened before he came back to Morgana. Mordred was happy to say the druid name as he found a chance to greet his old ‘friend’ and kill him. That’s all he wished for after he left Camelot.

“Emrys!”

Then, Morgana’s grin grew wider as she stared right at Camelot. She then laughed at herself and Mordred joined in. The evil woman was content, knowing that she would have another chance to claim what was ‘hers’ and attack the citadel itself with her force. As she looked bitterly to the city, she spoke to the boy. “She had just led us to our enemy.” Mordred gave out an evil grin and nodded at the lady as she gave a disgusted glare at the city.

“Mark my words young lass, even if you take Emrys as your refuge, you will never be able to escape me, not even Camelot will be safe for you” muttered Morgana as she stared at the Citadel endlessly.


	7. Chapter 7

It was morning and the rays of the sun ran through the glass and hit the girl’s gleaming colored skin. Dana’s eyes blinked as she slowly woke up and sat up, realizing that she is not at her room, but Merlin’s. It took her a few minutes to sink in that yesterday she got hit by a car since she ran away from a hideous Manticore; she was apparently rescued by Merlin in the woods, she ended up staying in Camelot and now she was sleeping on the boy’s bed… and then she realized that she didn’t take a bath at night. That was one thing that she should have done and felt embarrassed. ‘I wonder what Merlin would think’ the girl thought. Then, she grinned at herself as she remembered that she was in the same room as Merlin. She then turned to the door, looked down and saw the boy snoring. Dana giggled to herself as she watched him sleep. She then got out of bed, walked towards the cupboard and opened it. She gazed around and remembered her mp3 thumb-drive. She took her blazer, slipped her hand into her left inner pocket and found a ellipse-shaped device and some thin earplugs. Dana ran towards a brown bag that she had been given by Merlin before she ate her dinner and slipped her things in there. Then, she went back to the cupboard and took out her beige dress, dark brown vest, belt, suede boots and her hideous socks, and decided that the bath could wait until nighttime. She turned to Merlin, who still slept like a bear, and then turned to the door and got out of the room. She ran at the physician’s room to see whether there was any part of the room where she could change her clothes. Then, she ran back into the room and tripped on the boy’s leg and landed on the bed. Merlin suddenly woke up and groaned. Dana looked around franticly and saw her clothes and boots scattered all around the right side of the bed. Merlin scratched his head, got up and saw the girl lying down on her stomach across the bed. He gave a funny glare as Dana turned her eyes to see him stare at her.

“…good morning” greeted the young lady awkwardly.

“Morning” said Merlin. “Why are you lying down like that?”

“…I tripped on your leg!” answered Dana as she got up.

“Ah! Were you running around looking for a spot where you could change?”

Then, Dana seemed uncomfortable when she heard Merlin’s words. “H-how did you know that?” asked she.

“You were making a lot of noise” answered Merlin.

Dana blushed and stood there uncomfortably. The boy then grinned and laughed. The young foreigner did not know why he cockled like a rooster, but at that moment she felt like hiding under the cot.

“It’s alright Dana, I can get out of the room for you if you want to change” assured the man. Then, Dana smiled and giggled a bit.

“No Merlin, you can change first” answered Dana.

“Alright then, but then it’s your turn.”

Dana nodded and walked out of the room as Merlin beamed and turned to his cupboard.

 

 

*              *            *

It was morning and the queen woke up in the arms of the king. She smiled at him as she unconsciously touched her belly and felt something unusual. Guinevere grinned and laughed of delight as tears of joy ran down her face. She could feel deep inside her belly that a little foot was kicking her a bit. At the sound of her laughter, Arthur woke up and beamed lovingly at her, kissed her cheek and asked:

“What’s the matter my love?”

“I believe that we’re going to have a child.”

At her words, Arthur was astonished and did not know what to think. Then, Guinevere dragged his hand gently to her belly and he could feel a kick in her stomach. The young king looked at his wife and smiled.

“We’re going to have a family” said Guinevere as she caressed her husband.

Then, both laughed and embraced each other with happiness. Arthur could not believe his ears and laughed as he shed tears of joy. Then, they both looked and caressed each other as they gazed lovingly.

“You’re going to be a great mother Guinevere” assured Arthur.”

“And you a father” said Guinevere.

Then, Arthur and Guinevere gave each other a long and adoring kiss in the darkened room.

 

*             *           *

 

Merlin and Gaius were waiting for the little girl to finish changing her clothes. Both of them looked at each other and then back at the door.

“Come on Dana, it’s breakfast time! And we have to go to Arthur’s chambers!” uttered Merlin loudly.

“One moment!” responded Dana with a shrilling voice.

Then, Merlin and Gaius looked at each other and shrugged. Then, they glared at the door again and Dana came out of the room wearing a beige dress that went down to her knees, a belt, a dark brown vest, her hideous long navy socks, her feet were covered with the brown suede boots that Guinevere handed her and hanging around her shoulder, there was the leather bag. Merlin and Gaius stared at her while Dana did her hair up into a little bun. She gazed back at them awkwardly and asked:

“Is there anything wrong?”

“Oh no, you’re completely fine!” said Gaius and Merlin nodded with him.

Dana gave a strange glare at them and asked “are you sure about that?”

Both of them nodded and then went to the dining table where breakfast was waiting for them. While Dana followed them, she rolled up her sleeves and then sat down with them. She could see three bowls filled with porridge and her stomach kicked with hunger.

“Alright, let’s eat” said Gaius.

Then, both Merlin and Dana ate their porridges fast as they tried to finish it to be in time with Arthur Pendragon. Gaius watched them thump in their breakfast while he took time with his. Then, both of them finished it and went to run at the door.

“WAIT!” yelled Gaius.

Both youngsters turned to him as he handed them sandwiches. Both of them looked at the wrapped food and then back at Gaius, who then let them off. Both grinned and ran out of the Physician’s room.

 

 

*               *              *

 

Both Merlin and Dana arrived at the king’s bedroom and brought him breakfast as the married couple gave each other their affection. Merlin and Dana felt awkward while they stood there. The little foreigner’s eyes looked around and coughed loudly. The king and queen then turned around at the sound of the cough to see both of them in their room.

“Good morning you two” said a giggling Merlin.

There was a gawky silence as Arthur looked up and down at Merlin, who was laughing and then gazed at Dana, who gave out a giant grin that was as wide as the Cheshire cat’s. Guinevere also looked at them awkwardly as both servants stood there. Then, the king broke the quietness.

“Good morning… What are you doing here?”

“Serving breakfast and getting you ready for this morning!” exclaimed Merlin excitedly.

Arthur looked at the table and he realized that he and his wife were supposed to eat at that time. Then, he looked back at Merlin.

“And also, you said that you were going to introduce Dana to the knights of Camelot.”

“Ah! Of course! How could I forget?”

Then, Merlin and Dana nodded as they stared at the king and queen incompetently. Arthur gave out his uncomfortable smile as he tightened his lips and Guinevere gave out a little laughter. Merlin started whistling as he headed to open up the curtains and Dana stood there, not knowing what to do. Arthur turned to the girl and asked:

“So Dana, where did you sleep?”

“At Merlin’s room” the girl answered.

Then, Arthur raised both his eyebrows. All he could think about was Merlin trying to woo Dana for his own good, and so he chuckled a bit.

“How was it, sleeping in the same room as Merlin?” he asked

“Oh, it wasn’t too bad sire. I slept on the bed while Merlin rested on the floor.”

The king laughed a bit. “Are you sure Merlin didn’t disturb you?”

“…Yes, I’m very sure he didn’t” answered the girl awkwardly.

Arthur nodded. “Good.”

Then, Merlin walked towards Dana as he had finished opening the curtains. Then, both stood awkwardly in front of Arthur and Guinevere’s bed as they didn’t know what to do. The king looked at his wife and then back at Merlin and Dana. They both stood there giving each other wide smiles and then their grins faded as Arthur glared at them. Merlin coughed uncomfortably and said:

“Alright Arthur, you have to eat breakfast and get changed because training will be soon and this girl is really excited to meet them.”

After hearing Merlin’s words, she looked at him, raised an eyebrow while the king and queen strolled towards the table and then ate breakfast. As the royal couple did that, Dana elbowed Merlin’s side with her hard nudge.

“GAAH!” exclaimed Merlin as he then stared at the girl. “What was that for?!”

“I never said that…” answered Dana.

“Yes you did… in your sleep” whispered Merlin.

Dana widened her eyes in surprise and turned away with a blush. Merlin giggled as he was about to get closer to the girl and then, Arthur and Guinevere turned to stare at the boy. Then, Merlin got himself away from Dana and smiled at them inadequately and whistled around the room. Dana just stood there as the king and queen then continued to eat and talk to each other. She felt a long awkward silence as she stood there waiting for Arthur to finish breakfast. As she got bored, she looked around the room and suddenly stared at Merlin, who was fixing Arthur and Guinevere’s bed. Dana kept gazing and her grin grew as she kept thinking about him and her cheeks turned rosy. Merlin then stared back and beamed gently at her. He raised an eyebrow and Dana shrugged her shoulder. Merlin chuckled silently and Dana did the same. As they both did that, Arthur stood up from the table and went to change his clothes while Guinevere looked for a dress in her cabinet. Dana turned to looked at both royals and then stared back at Merlin. They both shrugged at each other and communicated quietly. Merlin mouthed:

“How did you enjoy staying in Camelot?”

“It was great!” mouthed Dana back. “Thanks for letting me stay in your room.”

Merlin blushed and nodded while he gave out his ridiculous grin and Dana laughed inaudibly at him. While they both laughed silently, the king walked towards them and stood while he glared at them. “A-hem!” both of them could hear. Merlin and Dana turned to Arthur and looked at him gawkily.

“What are you two doing?” asked the man.

“…Nothing!” exclaimed Dana.

Arthur raised an eyebrow. “Nothing?” he asked.

Dana and Merlin nodded uneasily as then, Arthur did the same and stared at his wife. Then, he looked back at both Merlin and Dana.

“Merlin, help me put on my armor.”

Then, the boy nodded and headed towards the table where the king’s armor was placed. Dana stared at Merlin while he helped Arthur place the chain mail. She smiled and her face turned red. Dana then turned around and saw Guinevere smiling at her. The girl was embarrassed as the gentle queen chuckled and headed towards the changing area. Guinevere knew that the girl was staring at Merlin. She asked herself why she made it so obvious and so, she looked at the window instead. The young foreigner stared right at the pane but her eyes kept glancing at the boy. She tried to keep her eyes away from him as she looked outside the window. Merlin glanced at Dana for a bit and smiled as his blue eyes turned back to Arthur’s armor. Then, Dana turned and King Arthur, who was ready for training, and Merlin walked towards her.

“Alright you two, let’s go” said Arthur.

Both of them nodded excitingly and walked out the door as Arthur turned to Guinevere and let her know that he would be at the training yard. Guinevere turned to Arthur and nodded approvingly. The couple smiled at each other and then turned away as the king walked out of the room with his manservant and the guest.


	8. Chapter 8

The three of them walked into the big training yard. Dana looked around and she could see other knights training, slashing their swords on some sort of scarecrow with knight’s armor… She had no idea what it was. Then, she looked at another one, who was throwing knives at a wooden and worn out round board, and then there was a group of them training with each other for a swordfight. Then, she turned back to look at the same direction as the king and the manservant. Arthur was glancing around, trying to look for something… or someone. The man had found three knights, who were hanging about each other and mucking around. As Arthur approached them, both Merlin and Dana stood there. The boy looked at the short lass as she looked shockingly at them.

“What’s the matter?” asked Merlin.

Dana widened her eyes as she answered “They’re so tall…”

Merlin laughed and patted her head as he spoke sarcastically “Dana, of course they’re tall. They’re knights of Camelot.”

Dana shook her head and stuck her tongue out to him. Then, they both turned to look at Arthur and the tall knights, who were walking towards them. Dana could then see more clearly what they looked like and could tell who was who; Sir Percival reminded her of a gentle giant, then, she looked at another of the knights and thought that Sir Leon was a man who needed a shave, and then she looked at the other one, she found Sir Gwaine handsome, but one who needed a haircut… and he certainly could not compare to Merlin’s attractive face. ‘ _Wait, why am I thinking about Merlin right now_?’ Dana thought and shook her head. She was still surprised about the three men’s heights. She knew about them because of her favorite series but she never thought that they would be even taller than she would have assumed. As they got approached, Arthur introduced the three knights to Dana and then introduced her to the three men. The gigantic man was Sir Percival, the one with the beard was Sir Leon and the one with the long hair was Sir Gwaine, which was how she was willing to remember each of them (since she had to pretend that she didn’t know them). Dana grinned and waved at them. Sir Gwaine chuckled and asked:

“So Dana, are you the one who Merlin fancies?”

Suddenly, Dana’s smile faded and looked at Merlin. The boy gave a long awkward smile, shrugged and looked away. Dana gave a gawky grin as she looked at the knight and answered:

“Well… I wouldn’t say that.”

“Oh my goodness Arthur, I thought you were exaggerating but… she is so tiny” exclaimed Sir Percival.

“That’s because you’re extremely big Percival” answered Gwaine.

“Ha, hah, but then again, she is as Arthur described” commented Sir Leon.

Then, Arthur and the knights laughed while Merlin and Dana joined in erratically. As they finished cockling, the three men were getting ready as told, and Arthur then stood, looking at both his manservant and Dana, and the three knights from the round table.

“Men, Knights of Camelot, I have some news for you.”

The knights nodded in attention and then Arthur announced. “I’m going to have an heir to the throne.”

Then, Sir Leon, Percival and Gwaine cheered and patted the king’s shoulders. Arthur chuckled with joy, Merlin laughed in deep bliss and thought that he will be as bad as the king himself, and Dana seemed confused.

“Wait, Guinevere’s pregnant?” she asked.

“Yes, she is.” Dana gave a funny glare at the king and Merlin looked at her. “Didn’t you notice that?”

Dana shook her head and Merlin, Arthur and the knights laughed and then she joined in.

“Imagine a new Arthur Pendragon junior… he will nag as he does” muttered Merlin to the young lass.

Dana laughed at Merlin’s words and could imagine a baby boy that looked like Arthur nagging the manservant and throwing things at him. ‘Poor boy… what more could he ever put up with’ the girl thought as she bit her lip. Then, the young king of Camelot spoke to her.

“So Dana, if you want you can watch a bit of training or Merlin can show you around Camelot right now.”

Dana grinned, looked at Merlin and then back at the king of Camelot.

“I think I’ll watch a little bit first.”

“Great!” exclaimed Arthur excitedly and turned to the knights.

“Alright men, we’ll start with a bit of a duel. Dana is going to watch us for a bit, and then Merlin is going to take her for a stroll around the citadel.”

The three men laughed at Arthur’s words and looked at the boy as he rolled his eyes and looked around the training yard. Then, Arthur yelled for a volunteer and Sir Gwaine raised his hand. The king nodded and Gwaine took his sword and swang it, aiming it at the king, but got stopped by Arthur. As the duel started, Dana clapped her hands and got all excited. Merlin’s eyes looked dully at the two fighting men as his view turned blurry. He kept blinking into boredom and turned to the exciting little girl who kept smiling and laughing. Merlin gave out a gentle grin and stared at her instead. Then, Dana turned to the boy and smiled at him as her attention to the fight was drawn away. They gazed into each other’s eyes and chuckled at each other. Dana moved closer to Merlin, who stood beside her, and the boy did the same. Then, as both turned to watch Sir Gwaine and Arthur, the duel was over and as always, the king won since he was the best fighter in the realm. Sir Leon and Sir Percival cheered and clapped while Arthur showed off with his magical sword. Merlin gave a funny glare and rolled his eyes as he muttered to himself. Dana raised and eyebrow and looked at the boy. Then, Arthur turned to the girl and asked:

“So, what do you think?”

“…It was fascinating sire” answered Dana as she turned to face the man.

“Maybe next time you could duel with us? Only if you wish to do so.”

Dana laughed at the very thought of that. She could never imagine herself hold a knight’s sword and beat the hell out of a man. It would be too heavy for her. She certainly was not the sort of girl who would not hurt a fly… or so she thought most of the time, and she didn’t want to injure the king. Of course she would like to have a duel with one of the knights, or even Arthur Pendragon himself, but she did not have the skills and she was scared to injure someone while she would start fighting; and so, Dana had to come up with an excuse.

“If only I had the skills sire...”

“Then, someday I may be able to teach you sword fighting.”

“That would be wonderful. Thanks for letting me watch” said Dana as she bowed.

Arthur nodded and let Dana and Merlin go with a nod. As the king continued training with his knights, both the girl and the lad walked away from the yard, out of the gates of the castle, and paced right into the markets, which Merlin showed to her. He showed her every place that she would need to know in case she needed something. They kept strolling around the village until they arrived to the peaceful border of the citadel.


	9. Chapter 9

They arrived to the border of Camelot, which was surrounded by grass, which led on to the forest nearby. Merlin and Dana sat down and gazed at the trees, and then up at the sky. The girl took out the two sandwiches that Gaius made for them, and handed one to Merlin. Both of them started eating their lunch. Dana could taste the smoky bacon inside her mouth as she ate it and swallowed mouthful of the sandwich. She had never tasted anything that was as delicious as the lunch both her and the boy were eating. While Dana gobbled hers fast, Merlin took time with his, enjoying the moment of munching his lunch and the nice greenery that bounded them. When Dana finished eating, she took out her two devices she had slipped in her bag earlier in the morning. She plugged the earplugs onto the mp3 thumb-drive, placed the pods in her ears, she pressed the button of her device, and then laid flat down on the grass. Her thumb-drive player was on, pressed another button and closed her eyes peacefully, enjoying the passive sounds of her favorite music. The thumb-drive played a song that fascinated the girl and while she listened, she would tap her fingers to the beat of the song. It played Coldplay’s song “Viva la vida”, and Dana couldn’t help but hum to the melody. Merlin finished his lunch and turned to stare at Dana. He raised and eyebrow as he looked at the object that was surrounding her. He wondered what that object was. At his sight, all he could see was a small ellipse-like shaped object and a few strings that encircled the girl. As the young foreigner could feel that the boy was staring, Dana opened her eyes and turned to Merlin, who looked at her curiously.

“What is that?” asked the boy.

“This?” Dana replied as she lifted up her small object.

Merlin nodded as he gave a funny stare. The girl chuckled and answered “this is an small object that plays music. It is called a thumb-drive player.”

Merlin could not believe Dana’s words. There was no such thing as an object that could play music named a ‘thumb-drive’. Usually to hear music they would have to wait for a few feasts or for a guest to come and sing for them. Of Course, he could remember ‘Lady Helen’s’ visit and how she almost killed Arthur before he was king. But the object that Dana was showing to him currently was extremely queer in his eyes. It was so strange to him, and so new, he never knew that that such things would ever exist. Merlin laid himself down on the ground and gave a quizzical stare at her. Dana raised an eyebrow while she smiled at him. The boy grabbed the device and had a look at it. It was the most unusual instrument that he had ever seen and he didn’t know what to do with it. The girl laughed and asked:

“Would you like to have a listen?”

Merlin did not know what to do. He wanted to, but at the same time he did not want to be rude since it was not his property and he wondered whether that object was going to kill his ears. Having to think of an answer quickly, Merlin nodded, and he did not know why he did that. Dana smiled and told the boy to come closer. Merlin did what he got told and then, Dana then rolled to his direction and placed one bud on his ear. Merlin looked at the piece of string that the girl was holding as he struggled to think about what it was. She put the pod on the boy’s ear and suddenly, as he could hear the music ringing in his ear, Merlin felt like he was in another world. Its unnatural sound flowed in his mind as he closed his eyes to let the beautiful noise sink in his mind and fell at peace. Dana laid back down on the grass and joined him in the tranquility. Merlin couldn’t stop giggling as he then turned to the girl. She stared at Merlin, smiled and raised an eyebrow.

“What are you laughing at?”

“You’re so strange! I never knew these sorts of things existed here.”

Dana’s smile faded a bit. She had remembered that she did not belong in Camelot; the famous kingdom where magic could exist and one where she could meet some as extraordinary as Merlin. ‘The Adventures of Merlin’ was just a series that she loved very much, and it was merely a dream she was in, she thought. Dana knew every single detail about each character she had met, but no one knew about her in their world, and she would fear of the thought of Merlin knowing more about her. If only they could read her like a book as she could to them and not judge about who she really was and where she came from… She had thought about Merlin and how he had ‘revealed’ to her that he had magic, and so she decided to exposed hers.

“That’s because I’m not of this world.”

Merlin fell curious as the song kept playing in his ear. “What do you mean?” he asked.

“… I mean that I’m from the future.”

Merlin widened his eyes, surprised at her words. He did not know what to think, but only fell shocked and confused.

“You’re from the future?”

Dana nodded and Merlin could not believe that she had told him her secret about why she was so unusual. It was the most extraordinary thing that he had ever heard, and Merlin wanted to know more about her world.

“That’s… I don’t know what to say” said Merlin as he got all excited.

“What is it like? How did you get here?” “Mmm… I actually don't know how I got here, but I can tell you about the future. It's quite busy. Lots of cars and buildings it has” said Dana.

Merlin raised an eyebrow and stared at the female foreigner. Dana giggled at his sight, and before the boy could ask such questions, she answered him:

“Cars are things that people ride on. It’s like a cart, except that it is not exactly. It carries people and takes them to any place they want, and of course the person has control over the transport. The buildings look so different from Camelot because they are all different sizes; some are thick, others can be tall and thin. Every child goes to school, people listen to these sort of things such as music which is played everywhere, there are people with talent, there are lots of jobs, tons of cities where you can dream about anything and people start to be equal.”

Merlin sighed in excitement and responded “I’d love to come to your world someday! You came to mine, I think I should get to know yours!”

Dana’s grin completely faded at Merlin’s words. She would have loved to bring Merlin there but she didn’t know how to, and she wanted to forget about the pain the future world gave her. She would rather stay in Camelot than come back to her old busy home which was full of uneventful moments, where no one made her feel like she belonged there, even if people talk about acceptance. She was also afraid of the thought of Merlin having to confront a world that he didn’t know and maybe being excluded from the world like her. Truth be told, it was the scariest world she had ever known, scarier than the first time she laid her feet on Camelot, and sometimes it can be the coldest because of the people’s manners and insults. As the aspects of her hometown sank in, she felt completely blank and lifeless all of the sudden.

“I don’t know if you’re going to like it there” uttered the girl.

Merlin was curious about Dana’s words as he asked why. Dana’s eyes turned to him as came up with a silly explanation as she felt that her life was coming back from her chilling memory. “It’s… too different from yours.”

“Well, Camelot is different from your world and you were able to adjust to it.”

Dana chuckled and spoke again. “There are too many things people have to be able to know so they can survive in my world. Sometimes it can be hard to adjust. Camelot is much simpler, and life is rather more tranquil here. Besides, I like some peace and quiet for once in a while.”

Merlin nodded and kept listening to the finishing song along with the girl. Both of them lied down and stared at the blue sky that glimmered around Camelot, and the boy closed his eyes. As the music stopped, Merlin’s excitement faded, his eyes opened and looked at Dana.

“It… stopped.”

“Ha hah, don’t worry, there’s more to this gadget than you think.”

Then, another song played in the device, but this time it had a quirky sound and felt strange in Merlin’s ears. It seemed to be out of tune yet it wasn’t at the same time. It was desonant. He did not know what those little sounds were, and he certainly had no idea why the voice of the person was so strange. Dana hummed to the melody of 'Welcome to my mystery' by the Plain White T’s and Merlin gave her a funny glare. He found the object to be bizarre, yet he liked the noise that it made and so, he kept looking at the velvety sky. Then, the boy heard a strange little sound coming from his side and turned to Dana, who was intoning the words of the song. Merlin hoisted both his eyebrows as he was also listening to the young foreigner sing the words. Merlin turned his body to her direction and kept staring at her. He turned to lean on the grass and gave out a charmed smile as Dana kept crooning the words. Then, she turned around and saw Merlin stare at her. He laughed while the girl beamed and asked:

“What is it?”

“You’re so unusual! I have never met anyone like you.”

“And I have never met anyone like you” Dana teased as she lightly rubbed her finger on Merlin’s nose.

The boy giggled and Dana did the same as she couldn’t stop smiling at him. As she looked more clearly at him, she had realized that she was so close to the boy as her smile faded a bit. She felt light in the head as she stared right into his glimmering deep blue eyes. Dana had never seen anything as beautiful as that. They were even more striking than the stars that shine and the moon that displays itself in the dark and smooth silk of the nighttime, and even more so radiant than the sun itself. The girl kept looking into his eyes and never wanted to leave that sight. Merlin looked back at her tenderly as he studied her with his eyes. He could see unusual and curious brown eyes that gazed at him and he smiled at the sight of them. He had never seen anything like it before. As both laid there, Dana clumsily wanted to turn away but Merlin stopped her. He kept leaning on the grass while he gazed at her and the girl laid there as she gave out her little giggle. Merlin rubbed her nose with his thumb teasingly and then, Dana placed some grass on his hair. The boy could feel twigs and lawns left on his head and chafed them away. Both laughed as they came closer to each other until they both heard a snapping noise coming from a branch. Both youngsters flinched to the direction of the sound.


	10. Chapter 10

Merlin and Dana turned to the sound of the crack and stared at the trees. As curious and scared as they were, both stood up at the same time and started to walk right into the forest to see what it was that broke the twig. Dana indicated Merlin to give back her stringed object and she placed it inside her bag, along with her thumb-drive and the wrappings of the sandwiches. The girl placed her bag on her shoulder and stared right into the forest. Then, Merlin and Dana tiptoed as slow as they could, trying their best not to make any noise that could attract danger. As they followed the cracking sound, right at the corner of a tree, Dana tripped over a root and fell. Merlin cringed at the sound of the girl’s yelp and saw her on the root of a tree. “Are you alright?” asked Merlin. “I’m fine” she answered. Merlin nodded and walked towards her. Dana looked around the ground and then saw a brown furry rabbit. The boy looked at her, wondering what she was staring at and then gazed at the same direction as her. He saw the little animal that the girl was staring at. Its little nose kept twitching and smelling the thin air. The rabbit looked around the forest and then left in a hurry. Dana stood up, glanced at Merlin and said sarcastically:

“It’s a rabbit.”

“…I know” answered Merlin. They both stood there gawkily. Merlin raised an eyebrow and Dana whispered with mockery:

“Imagine if we got ourselves killed by that adorable and furry animal.”

“Oh yes, that would be the best way to die” continued Merlin.

Then, they both got silent for a moment and laughed at each other. Dana couldn’t help but point at Merlin for his sarcasm and he kept cockling about the rabbit. They were so helpless about the fact that they had gotten scared by an innocent furry animal that was just making its way in the woods. Then, a sudden rush of wind interfered with their conversation and pushed them to the ground. Dana groaned at the ground and the boy felt magic surrounding them at work and turned around. He saw a pale lady with skin as cold as ice and her shadowy gowns and hair were as dark as nighttime itself. Dana slowly twisted herself on the ground and saw Lady Morgana walking towards them with a boy that gave a bitter stare and seemed to be younger than Merlin. The girl looked worried and Merlin froze at the sight of the two people. The woman approached both Merlin and Dana while the boy stood there in cruel silence.

“Greetings you two” hailed Morgana with mock.

Then, Morgana turned to look at Merlin and said “It’s been a while since I’ve seen you.”

Dana did not know why, but she was extremely scared of seeing Morgana in the flesh. Every time she would watch the series, all she could do is hate her and be annoyed about the fact that she had betrayed the people whom she called friends in the past. Now that she met her and saw her with her own eyes, Dana felt rigid and found that there was nowhere to run at this moment and she could not leave Merlin after everything that he had done for her yesterday. The ruthless lady turned to Dana, strolled towards her and crouched on one knee. Dana’s inhaling got ragged as she gazed into the lady’s dim eyes and Morgana spoke:

“Hello little one.”

Dana did not respond, but her breathing kept going in a panicking pace. Her heart was beating fast, feeling as if it were about to explode of fear and her eyes shook. She didn’t want to look at the lady at all.

“It’s me, Morgana. Remember me?” she said. 

Of course Dana knew who Morgana was since she was the main villain that she hated the most, but she didn’t understand why the woman was asking such a question. Dana didn’t remember any interactions that she ever had with the wicked witch. Merlin got frantic, fearing what would come of Morgana when she attacks the little girl, and so he tried to drag himself towards Dana, but Mordred stopped Merlin with both his arms, lifted him up from the ground and restrained him.

“Let go of me!” groaned the frustrated boy. Then, Morgana turned to Mordred, looked at the young Warlock and stood up. Merlin tried to break free from the young man as he glared at his worst enemy. She gave out her evilest smirk and made fun of him as she walked towards him.

“Why Emrys, you soon became so attached for this lass. What made you feel like that?”

“Don’t you dare hurt her!” he exclaimed in response.

Morgana laughed and slapped the boy on the face. Appalled by the sight, Dana stood up and ran towards the evil woman, ready to attack her. However, Morgana turned around and her eyes gleamed in fire as then the young foreigner got pushed by a gust of wind and made her land on the fallen leaves. Dana hit her back on the ground and then slowly rolled around as she kept trying to relieve her agony. Morgana gave out her disgusting sneer and then looked back at Merlin.

“You just got yourself a useless helper.”

There was a silent moment as Merlin glared at the witch, who chuckled at herself. The young Warlock gulped and asked:

“What do you want Morgana?”

“Oh, I would like to bring the girl with me, not that is any of your business.”

Merlin got infuriated at Morgana’s words and his heart beat in an anxious pace as he feared what she could do to his new friend.

“Leave her alone Morgana! She has done nothing to you!”

“Oh but Emrys, she has… She ran away from me just a few days ago. I now have found her thanks to Mordred” spoke Morgana with her cold and cruel voice.

Merlin widened his eyes and then looked at Dana, who groaned on the leafy ground and rolled around slowly. The boy then looked back at Morgana as she stared to choke him. Merlin tried to catch his breath as Morgana looked at him madly and kept giving a madman’s laugh. At the sight of it, Dana stood up and panicked. She didn’t know what to do at that precise moment and so she looked around for an instrument she could use to attack the evil witch. Then, Dana turned around and miraculously found a branch that was the size of a sword that she would wield. She snatched it and then ran towards the woman. Merlin kept struggling to take off the witch’s hand and Morgana kept laughing frantically at him as she said:

“I now finally get to kill you Emrys, you better enjoy it while you can…”

Merlin froze and stood in shock. He felt helpless at the fact that he couldn’t show his magic to Morgana, fearing what would come of her if she knew his real identity. As Morgana was about to mutter a few foreign words, Dana hit her on the head with the branch and she let go of Merlin’s throat. A sudden pain struck her as she turned around and took out her sword. She flanged the sword around as the girl stooped, stretched out her leg and kicked Morgana’s foot, making her land on the ground. Then, Dana flipped her branch around as she glared at Mordred. The boy took out his sword and was about to run. Dana stood where she was, and Morgana’s hand clutched her ankle. The girl looked down and kicked the witch’s cheek hard. Then, the woman groaned and the young foreigner turned around to see Mordred run towards her with his weapon. She then looked at Merlin and saw that he was struggling to breathe as he fell on the grass. Then, Dana turned to Mordred, who had his sword out ready to slay her and then she hit him hard on the head with the branch and the boy fell unconscious. The girl saw both Morgana, who kept groaning, and Mordred laying on the ground. Before she could be attacked again, she quickly ran towards Merlin and took him back to Camelot, where she would let him rest for the day. She made him stand up, took his right arm, wrapped it around her and then started walking towards the mighty citadel. Merlin kept weak and kept wheezing as Dana was trying to bring him back to his room.

*            *          *

Dana took him into the physician’s room but Gaius was nowhere to be found. The girl got frustrated since the old man was absent at the moment that they needed him most. She looked around the room and then, took Merlin to his bedroom. She laid him down on his bed and caressed the boy. Merlin looked around the room and struggled to breath. He panicked and moved around brusquely and Dana hushed him with a soothing touch on the cheek. Merlin looked at the girl and tried to speak a word. However, his voice was muted after the strangle Morgana gave him. Dana calmed him down again, telling him to rest his throat. She stroked his head and then went to get a cup of water in the Physician’s room and gave it to him. The boy drank it and felt much better, much calmer, and his breathing was not as ragged as it was when both of them came from the forest and right into his room. Then, Dana took the glass and put it on his small desk. She turned back to him and told him to rest. Merlin nodded, he obeyed and his eyes slowly shut. Dana kept caressing him tenderly as she hummed softly a melody that sounded like a lullaby. The boy felt at peace as he heard the tune and his body relaxed completely. When he listened to the melody, he felt safe and sound around her, and felt peaceful. The beautiful lullaby put him to sleep and the girl smiled sympathetically and was sited right next to the boy. She kept stroking him and kissed his forehead as she stayed there to watch over him in his deep slumber of tranquility.


	11. Chapter 11

“WHOOSH! WHOOSH!”

A strange and unnatural sound filled the forest and a light blinked as a big object started to fade into existence.

“WHOOSH! WHOOSH!”

A big blue wooden police box appeared in the middle of the forest and two men came out of it. One looked excited, and the other worn-out. One was a man, tall and handsome with brown messy hair, wearing a thin-stripped suit, a long jacket that fell right onto his ankle and some red converse shoes. The other, aged fifteen, was shorter, chubbier and his brown eyes gave a grumpy glare at the forest as he scratched his brown bushy hair. He wore a plain grey T-shirt and a light brown jacket with dull jeans and worn-out sports shoes, giving the impression of a tired and lazy boy. Both stood there staring at the forest in wonder and awe.

“Ah! Look, we landed on a forest! Fascinating!” said the British tall man with brown sticky-up hair.

“Why? What’s so fascinating about it?” scoffed the shorter and chubby Australian boy with the messy and lighter brown hair.

“That’s the thing Cooper! It’s a place that no longer exists on Planet Earth! It’s great!”

Cooper rubbed his head in confusion as he looked around the forest. He looked around and all he could see were hanging trees that were not all standing straight and too much greenery blinding him. Then, he looked back at the tall man in the suit and asked:

“Doctor, where do you think we are?”

“I don’t know” he answered.

“But it looks really exciting!”

“Beats me…” muttered Cooper as he shrugged his shoulders.

“Oh come on Cooper, where did all that excitement go? I mean, you were so eager to come with me! Why aren’t you now?”

“Oh I don’t know… maybe because we’re in a boring forest.”

The Doctor gave a funny glare to the boy after he heard his answer. Cooper raised both his eyebrows as he glared back at the man. The Doctor laughed and told the boy to come and explore the jungle with him and rambled on with the word ‘Allonsy’. Cooper rolled his eyes and decided to accompany the Doctor into the unknown land. Both men left the TARDIS and looked around the woods. All the chubby boy could see were numerous trees that seemed as weary as him. He kept yawning of boredom and decided to lie down on the ground. The Doctor heard dried leafs crunching and saw Cooper lying down next to a tree. The Doctor ran towards him and snapped his fingers at him.

“Oi!” the Doctor exclaimed.

Cooper flinched as he soon woke up from his deep and short sleep. His eyes opened and looked at him in confusion.

“What? I’m tired!” Cooper complained.

“We didn’t come here to hibernate! You can do that in the TARDIS, now get up and walk with me!” the Doctor bossed around.

The boy rolled his eyes and stood up, ready to pace along with the Time Lord. They explored the forest for two hours and Cooper did not find anything intriguing. Then, Cooper snapped a twig with his big foot, having the feeling of being in a forbidden place and looked up as he found a mysterious setting with moldy gigantic statues of kings, filled with enigmatic greenery that followed the paths to an unknown place. His eyes looked at the place in surprise and called out the tall man’s name. The Doctor came running towards Cooper and looked up along with the boy. Both got so surprised at the large part of the forest they had found. They felt the chills as they looked at the big statues of Ancient Kings, and it was no ordinary place for them to be standing at. It was certain that something was wrong with the forest and to them, it would not be just a forest. Cooper, who was finally intrigued and dazed, said:

“Doctor, is it me or is this…?”

“The Valley of the Fallen Kings” the Doctor answered the boy.

Cooper blinked at the statues’ presence and looked numbly and deeply into them. There was something unnatural about this place that made him want to run back to the TARDIS, but didn’t want to look childish in front of the Doctor and so he stood there with him. He didn’t know what it was, but he knew that being in such a place would be dangerous. Cooper looked at the Doctor and pointed out:

“This place never existed on Planet Earth.”

“Then that means we’re not on Planet Earth then” the Doctor answered.

Cooper did not know what the Doctor meant, and was scared, for the first time, about what the time lord would have to say.

“What?” “I don’t know… but this is utterly strange” muttered the Doctor to himself.

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“Cooper,” the Doctor said as he turned to him. “What I mean is that we’re not in any existing planet or a time period at all… but we may have landed in someone’s planted mind.”

The boy couldn’t believe the words he had heard and he was certainly confused about the whole situation. “Wait, what? But how can you end up in a person’s mind.”

“That’s the question I need to answer” the Doctor replied in deep thought. “I don’t know how we ended up here.”

“But Doctor, we’re looking for my friend. I don’t believe she would even be here. It’s completely impossible. Maybe there was something wrong with the TARDIS.”

“Maybe…” the Doctor muttered as he looked down to the floor and crouched. His long jacket fell to the ground as he glared at the ground and uttered “Or maybe something, or someone has been calling for help.”

Then, Cooper looked down at the ground just like the Doctor was. He could see an unnatural scribble on the ground, like a human’s handwriting. The words ‘HELP ME!’\were written with blood on a big piece of paper that was covered in leaves, in front of the Valley and Cooper shuddered. There was something about the writing that he could recognize. Cooper felt concerned and was frightened at the scribbling and the Doctor stared at him.

“What’s the matter?” asked he.

“I recognize that handwriting. I’d know it anywhere.”

“Why? Whose is it?”

There was a tense silent moment as the words stared into his eyes and he showed his fear for them as he said the words he didn’t want to speak.

“It’s my friend’s writing!”

The Doctor raised an eyebrow in surprise. He was shocked and curious about Cooper’s words. The boy stared back at the Doctor and asked:

“Why would my friend’s handwriting be here?”

“I don’t know Cooper. Something about this place is very unnatural. It doesn’t exist on your Planet and certainly not on the other planets. I can only conclude that we ended up in a person’s mind, even so… maybe in a dream.”

Cooper gulped at the Doctor’s words. He was numbly scared and frozen. His eyes gazed around as he questioned him:

“Do you think she could be here?”

“Oh yes” answered the Doctor in deep and silent fear. “I believe your friend could be here somewhere. We just don’t know where she would go in a place like this.”

Then, both men gazed at each other in wondering thought and then glared back at the Valley of the Fallen Kings. As they were about to walk right into it, both of them heard distant cries. The Doctor and Cooper looked at each other as the cries became louder and looked at each other. Men came out of the Valley of the Fallen Kings and held up their blades ready to slaughter them both. Cooper widened his eyes and The Doctor broke into a yell:

“RUN!”

Then, both the Doctor and Cooper ran as fast as they could. The big group of men kept chasing both men and kept holding up their weapons. The Doctor and Cooper sprinted as fast as they could and all the way to the TARDIS and entered it. The Doctor ran towards the engines and started to drive. The Doctor turned to Cooper and said:

“Alright Cooper, we’re going to go and find your friend. Is there any place you can think of?”

“What?! Why do you ask me?”

“I don’t know! Just try to think of something… fast! Before they come here!”

“Uh-ummm… Camelot?”

The Doctor then looked at Cooper with a funny glare. The boy looked annoyingly at him and answered:

“That’s the only place I can think of right now, so hurry up!”

“Alright! Alright!” yelled the Doctor.

Then, the Time Lord began fidgeting with the engines of the TARDIS. The men ran towards the blue wooden police box and then, the gigantic object started whooshing.

“WHOOSH! WHOOSH!”

The TARDIS started to fade away, it’s light blinked at the unnatural sounds and the men backed away in fear. The TARDIS faded away and then disappeared into tin air. The Doctor and Cooper were nowhere to be found.


	12. Chapter 12

Dana walked towards Arthur’s Chambers and arrived at the door. She knocked on it and a voice let her in. Dana entered and closed the door. She turned around to see King Arthur writing on some parchments. The girl would have assumed that it was for royal meeting’s purposes. The king grinned as soon as he saw her and mentioned the name gladly.

“Dana!”

“Sire” said Dana as she bowed.

“You came back sooner than I expected.”

“I did” confirmed Dana.

“Is anything the matter?”

“Yes my lord. I just came here to tell you that Merlin won’t be able to work for the rest of the day.”

Then, Arthur stopped scribbling with ink as soon as he heard those words. He looked up at Dana and gave a funny glare. Dana looked awkwardly around the room as the king did not seem to be happy about what he had just heard. “Merlin?” “Yes, sire.” Arthur scoffed in annoyance and asked “Is he at the tavern?”

“No sire” Dana answered.

“Is he trying to have a day off to woo you?”

Dana dropped her mouth open and blushed at the thought of that. She felt embarrassed, yet she found it funny. Although she possibly wished for that, she would have felt gawky about the whole situation. Arthur raised both his eyebrows as he waited for an answer and then, Dana spoke again. “No your majesty, that’s not the reason” replied Dana with a discomfited voice.

“Then tell me, why is Merlin trying to take the day off?”

“Actually sire, I recommended it.”

Then, Arthur nodded and Dana looked solemnly at him.

“It was about the time when he showed me around Camelot.”

“Yes?”

“Well… we were both eating lunch at the border of Camelot and then we both got attacked.”

“Meaning?”

Dana looked around gawkily at the room and continued talking. “Meaning that Merlin won’t be able to come because he almost died at that incident.” 

Arthur’s scoffed glare then turned into a concerned stare. He didn’t know what to think and he became more curious about the incident.

“Who attacked both of you?”

“It was a woman and a young man.”

“Can you recall their names?”

“Yes sire, the boy is called Mordred and I believe the lady’s name is Morgana” answered Dana as she pretended not to know who they really were.

Arthur’s glare became numb when he heard both names. Dana knew that Mordred used to be a knight of Camelot and betrayed the king because of his love’s death. She stood there, not telling anymore information, but asking if anything was the matter. Arthur looked at Dana and said:

“I’m fine. Merlin may have the rest of the day of.”

Dana nodded and stood there. Arthur was shaking at his sit and glared blankly at the partly-written piece of parchment. Dana coughed and then, the king stared at her.

“Your majesty, if you wish I can take Merlin’s place for the day.”

“Oh no Dana, I could never do that” disapproved the king. “You’re a guest. You should be making yourself at home.”

“Thank you your majesty. I already feel so.”

The king gave her a sympathetic smile and then dismissed her.

“Thank you for your information” said Arthur and smiled gently.

Dana bowed and then walked out of the room, leaving a young king in deep thought and unease.


	13. Chapter 13

“WHOOSH! WHOOSH!”

The TARDIS appeared in another forest and landed there. Then, The Doctor and Cooper came out of it and saw they were surrounded by repeated greenery. The Australian boy groaned in annoyance and turned to the Time Lord.

“Doctor, I swear to God! You’re the worst driver I’ve ever met! This isn’t even Camelot!”

“Calm down Cooper, I tried! I don’t know why it landed here!”

“Well you should know! You’re the one who drives this thing!” argued Cooper.

“Alright! alright!” The Doctor exclaimed to end the quarrel. “Now let’s get back inside the TARDIS!”

Cooper groaned, rolled his eyes and paced along with the Doctor to the inside of the TARDIS. The fifteen year old closed the door and the Doctor started driving the ship again. Cooper stared at the Doctor in endless worry. Even though he was one young man that doesn’t usually get scared or worried, he felt troubled about his friend’s whereabouts and unknown events that might have happened. The Doctor turned around to glare at his companion. He saw the young boy gaze down to his feet and then the ground of the TARDIS. The man approached the boy, gave out a compassionate smile and patted his shoulder.

“Hey, I know she’s a good friend of yours.”

Cooper nodded and seemed more concerned than he was before. As the Doctor stood there with him, he assured the young boy:

“We will find her, and bring her back home to her family, and also to you and your friends.”

Cooper looked up at the Doctor and smiled. Both men then shook their hands and stood there in deep sympathy. Then, both ran back to the engines of the TARDIS and kept fidgeting with them. Then, it hissed and gave out a few sparks of electricity all of the sudden. Both the Doctor and Cooper flinched and clang themselves to the engines and then, the TARDIS stopped. The Doctor looked up and Cooper stared at the Doctor in curiosity.

“Have we landed?”

“We have my friend” confirmed the Doctor.

Cooper glared at the Doctor, who indicated him to come out with him. Then, both left the TARDIS and a majestic realm stood in front of them. Cooper’s serious glare turned into a smiling and stunned gaze and the Doctor laughed in awe. Both men knew that they have finally arrived to Camelot, the mighty realm of the Land of Albion, where King Arthur Pendragon lives. Cooper laughed along with the Doctor and stared at him as he said: “I can’t believe I’m standing in front of Camelot with you!” “Neither can I!” agreed the Doctor.

“It’s the farthest I’ve been. Whoever pictured the whole citadel in their head is brilliant. The person must have known its detail.”

“No one would know it as much as my friend” said Cooper.

Then, the Doctor turned to his companion and Cooper stared back at the Doctor. Both got so excited that both started running in the Citadel.

 

*           *         *

 

Dana sat beside Merlin’s bed and watched over him. The girl kept caressing his forehead with a damp cloth and stared at the sleeping manservant. Dana smiled at him and then kissed his forehead. Then, she stood up and realized what she had done. She stared at the sleeping boy and then, she turned back to the door of the bedroom. ‘ _I can’t believe it. Why did I do that_?' thought the young foreigner to herself. Then, Dana shook her head, driving her thoughts away, took the long shirt the young lad let her borrow and then went to have a bath. While the girl did that, Merlin kept lying on his bed. Then, he woke up and looked around his room. He could still feel the girl’s kiss on his forehead. The touched it gently and grinned at himself. His face turned red and his head felt light. His heart started beating fast as he thought about the incident nearby the forest. He remembered that he was being choked by Morgana and then, Dana saved his life with her fighting skills. Merlin was so impressed and sighed as he thought about the event over and over again. His cheeks burned redder and he giggled at himself. He had finally found himself to be enchanted by the girl who had just arrived yesterday in his arms. Merlin sat up while he kept thinking about her and then, he heard the door open. He turned around and saw Dana wearing the long shirt she had borrowed and her soaking black hair was reflecting the afternoon sunlight. Merlin smiled at the sight of her and gave an crazed look. Dana gave a soft smile as she stroked her wavy mane and tried to keep it dry.

“How are you feeling?” she asked.

“Much better actually” he answered.

Dana beamed at him and then went to the cupboard to get a shirt for the lad. Merlin couldn’t stop staring at her as he watched her get a garment from his cupboard. Then, the girl approached him and gave it to him. Merlin took the shirt and smiled at her as he touched her hand. Dana looked down and saw Merlin’s hand touching hers and she blushed. The Warlock told her to sit next to him for a bit and the girl did as she was told. She sat next to him and all she could see was Merlin smiling so gently at her. Dana’s heart stopped as she stared into his eyes, her lips shook and no words were able to come out of her mouth. Merlin chuckled a bit and said:

“Thank you for saving me.”

“…Don’t mention it” Dana said. “You probably would have done the same for me”

“Yes, I probably would have” agreed Merlin.

Dana smiled gently at her and patted the boy’s head. “You better go and take your bath” she reminded him. Then, Merlin had remembered to do that and then went running out to the Physician’s room with the shirt that Dana gave him. The young female foreigner laughed at him and stayed sited at the young Warlock’s bed.

 

*            *          *

 

“Where is the castle?” the Doctor asked loudly. “I can’t even see it?”

“It’s because you’re not looking with your eyes, you’re searching for it with your mouth” answered Cooper sarcastically.

“Oh Cooper… that wit of yours. I wish I had it.”

“No, really Doctor, I’m just saying that it’s right there” said the fifteen year old boy as he pointed at the one direction.

Then, the Doctor looked at the way the boy’s pointing finger was and saw the castle they were both looking for. It was the gigantic fortress where the Pendragons lived. It stood firm and majestic just like Arthur Pendragon himself, and the walls were shining white. Both men had never seen anything like that before and its presence made them feel overwhelmed. The Doctor dropped his mouth open at the stronghold and muttered:

“Oh yes…” and then his mutter turned into an exclamation. “Oh yes!”

Then, both the Doctor and Cooper started running towards it. While they did that, a solemn and scary statue of an angel seemed to be gazing at them. It seemed to follow the two of them where they went. There they sprinted along a path that led them to the castle. They ran as fast as they could and then they ended up going into the entrance and standing there, and feeling lost. The Doctor and Cooper glared around the castle and looked for some sort of entrance.

“Where is the entrance?” the Doctor questioned.

Cooper gazed around the castle and then, saw the main entrance where King Arthur and his knights would go into the palace. It was a big wooden gate with shining colored glass on top of the wood, and Cooper knew that’s where all the noble people would enter.

“Doctor… I found the entrance” said Cooper.

Then, the Doctor turned to see the door to the inside of the palace. The man grinned in excitement and exclaimed to himself.

“Yes! Allonsy!”

Then, both Cooper and the Doctor ran towards the castle and then, ten guards turned around to see them try entering the Pendragon household. The men ran towards them and surrendered them. The Doctor and Cooper looked at the guards and widened their eyes. As the sentries held up their lances ferociously, the Doctor put his hands up and yelled:

“I surrender! We have nothing to hide.”

‘ _What_?’ Cooper thought to himself as he gave his companion a funny glare. The Doctor turned around and shrugged his shoulders thinking ‘ _well, what else was I supposed to say?_ ’ Then, the boy rolled his eyes and turned to face one of the guards. Suddenly, Cooper punched the man on the face, kicked the other next to him and hauled more sentries. The Doctor gave out a shocked glare and then looked at Cooper. Guards came from every corner and the man gave a troubled look and widened his eyes as he yelled the one word that he didn’t want to say.

“RUN!”

Then, both of them ran inside the palace as more guards chased them. The Doctor and Cooper ran up the stairs and kept looking back and forth to see if there were any men trying to get to them.

“What did you do that for? Now you’re going to get us killed!” yelled the Doctor.

“Me?! What else could I do?! You just said the stupidest words just then! I wanted them to get out of my way!” Cooper screamed back.

“Well, if we did surrender we could have been left alone!”

“Oh whatever! Just run!”

Then, the guards came in and ran towards them. The Doctor and Cooper sprinted as fast as they could, trying to get away from the numerous sentries that went after them. As they reached the top of the stairs, a man’s presence had stopped them. The Doctor and Cooper suddenly froze in front of him. There was no doubt that the man who stood in front of them was the King of Camelot, with his powerful presence and wondering glare. The Doctor and Cooper turned behind them and the guards surrounded them in a big circle. It was certain that they were trapped. The Doctor and Cooper stood awkwardly as the king gave a curious stare at them and asked:

“What are you two doing here?”

The Doctor froze at Arthur’s presence and tried to think of something to say, but Cooper blurted out:

“It is none of your business you brainless Blondie!”

The Doctor turned to Cooper and nudged him with his elbow.

“Cooper! That’s not the way we should talk to Arthur Pendragon! He’s the king!” Then, the Doctor turned to Arthur and said “I am very sorry about my friend. He doesn’t really know how to use his manners, and as you can see he is not very well educated.”

As he stared at the Doctor, Cooper dropped his mouth open, feeling insulted and annoyed. The Time Lord turned to the teenager, raising both his eyebrows and giving a glare with his eyes, as he thought ‘ _that’s what you get.'_  Then, the king gave a funny glare around the area and then, looked at the unusual men again.

“Quite right” affirmed Arthur. “Both of you will spend the night in the dungeons.”

The Doctor’s tranquil expression faded and he started hyperventilating while Cooper stood there in anger. They could not believe that in their first day at Camelot, they would have to spend the night in jail. Cooper muttered to himself and the king indicated the guards to take them away.

“I protest!” yelled Cooper at ransom. “I don’t want to sleep in jail!”

The king waved his hands, telling the guards to take them where they should be staying at. The sentries dragged the Doctor and Cooper down the stairs, leading them to the dungeons where they will sleep in the night.


	14. Chapter 14

Nighttime came and Gaius had served dinner on the table. They ate chicken, ham, cheese and some vegetables which went with the dish. There was an awkward silence as they all ate their meals and Dana looked at both men. The young girl had finished her food while Merlin almost finished his and Gaius was eating slowly. She, and Merlin, didn’t tell him about the incident at midday. Dana felt horrible for having to keep the whole thing secret, and so, she broke the silence.

“Merlin and I got attacked by a woman.”

Then, when Gaius heard these words, he stopped eating his dinner and looked at both Merlin and Dana. Although both of the youngsters didn’t like the look on the old man’s face, they knew that they had to tell him somehow. It was certain that Gaius didn’t seem happy about it.

“When you say the word woman, do you mean Morgana Pendragon?” he asked.

Dana nodded, shuddering at the very name. She disliked the woman even more when she was at her malicious presence. Dana gulped and Merlin stared at her in pure infatuation. He was still thinking about how the young foreigner had saved his life. Gaius looked worried at them and asked more questions such as ‘has she enchanted you in some sort of way?’ or ‘did she try to kill you?’, or even a question like ‘did she try to torture you?’ At hearing those words, Dana started to get annoyed and told the man to calm down. Then, Gaius stopped babbling and sat there. Then, Dana told the man the whole story about how she tried to take her away and kill Merlin in the process, and also how young Mordred was there with her. He listened to the girl carefully and nodded. He understood what have happened.

“I see… You’re both lucky to be alive. She’s extremely dangerous.”

“Yes we are. If it weren’t for this young foreign heroine, I wouldn’t even be here at all” remarked Merlin.

Gaius hoisted both his eyebrows in surprise and gazed at both Merlin and Dana. He didn’t want to admit, but he found it strange, yet so amusing. But he didn’t let his thoughts get onto the conversation, and so, all he could do was listen to both the young people who sat in front of him. Merlin came a bit closer to Dana and said:

“I have to thank you again.”

“You’re welcome Merlin, anything for a friend” Dana answered.

Gaius shrugged his shoulders as he heard both of them speak to each other and went back to eat his meal. Both of them looked at each other for a while, and a thought struck he young boy. His eyes looked down at his meal and then, went back to gaze at the girl.

“You said that you didn’t have the skill to fight” pointed out Merlin.

“I don’t” answered Dana. “But I wish I did.”

“Then what was that you did back there in the forest?” asked a curious Merlin.

“That was my instinct” said the foreigner.

Merlin nodded, even though he didn’t believe her. He chuckled a bit and commented “well, you have a very good instinct then.”

“Well, thanks.”

Both smiled at each other and then turned back to Gaius who was eating his dinner. Merlin and Dana were about to laugh as they could see traces of chicken on the old man’s face. The, Gaius stared at them and came up with other news before both young people could cockle at his face.

“Oh yes, you might be interested in these news I’m about to announce; two men had been arrested.”

Merlin and Dana scoffed at the news, thinking that it was normal. Gaius gave them a serious glare and said:

“Two strange men.”

Then, Dana and Merlin turned to face Gaius after he said those words. His mouth was shut, serious like a fish’s lips and his eyes were dim, staring at the two people. Dana gave out a smile and said:

“Why? What’s would be so strange about them? Merlin is the most unusual man I’ve ever met” teased Dana as she gave a little shove at the boy.

Merlin played along and laughed with her as they both gave each other playful pushes. Then, Gaius spoke again.

“It is not a matter to laugh about. These men are not from this world. They wear the most unusual garments. One wears a long brown robe with a strange and stripped outfit and the other wears clothes which I cannot even describe.”

“Are they really not from here?” asked Dana.

“Yes Dana,” confirmed Gaius. “They’re not from here. I know that myself because I went down there earlier to see one of the people in the dungeons. He was infected by a wound, and so the man talked to me.”

“What did he say?” asked Merlin.

“He said that he came to Camelot with the boy by a Blue Wooden Box.”

Then, Dana widened her eyes and Merlin gave a strange gaze at the man. They thought that the words didn’t fit together, and something such as that would completely impossible, but for some reason, Dana thought it to be familiar.

“Did the man say that the box had a name?” blurted out the girl in question.

“Yes he did” replied Gaius.

Dana slowly widened her eyes in shock as she glared at Gaius. She couldn’t think clear as she tried to think about a sort of box that could bring people to places.

“What is the name of it?” questioned the girl.

“He said that the blue box was named the TARDIS.”

As Dana heard the word, se started to have flashback of a man who would travel through time. She would think about gigantic spider who tried to eat them both, she could remember her friend comforting her from her fears, she remembered big robotic beings, metallic people. Worst of all, she had remembered scary Angels that had the ability to kill a person in the blink of an eye…

' _Don't blink!_ ' a familiar voice said to her in the past.

and suddenly, Dana remembered seeing a statue of a scary Angel approach her when she blinked. She kept having flashes of the rocky demon that stared right into her in the middle of the crowd after receiving the hit from the speeding car. All this things came into mind and Dana gave a shocked glare and froze, helpless at these thoughts as she shed a small tear. Then, a gentle voice called her and Dana turned to Merlin.

“Are you alright?” the young boy asked.

“Y-yes… I’m fine” lied Dana.

Then, Merlin lifted his hand and wiped away her small tear gently with his thumb. Dana felt a small tingle in his finger electrifying her. It was something that she had felt before which she so desperately wanted to forget. She could remember her previous young lover, whom she used to be infatuated with, one who broke more promises than she did. Disgusted at that thought, she wanted to take out Merlin’s thumb, but her hands were numb, and she let his touch catch her glistening eyes. She could see Merlin’s worried gaze, and felt scared. Distraught about her thoughts, Dana then turned to Gaius, who gave out a wondering look.

“Is everything alright?”

“Yes” answered the girl. “Everything’s fine. Thanks for the meal.”

Gaius nodded, and Dana stood up and went into the bedroom. Merlin then turned to Gaius and said:

“I’m done too.”

Gaius nodded again and told him to keep an eye on her. The boy listened and then went inside his room.

 

Dana sat on her sleeping spot and listened to her mp3 thumb-drive. It played the song “On my own” by The used, which suited the mood she was in. Depressive and doubtful, Dana did not know what to think, feeling lost just like the song itself and wondering whether those thoughts were actually memories… or creepy hallucinations that she had imagined. Dana felt so alone, with no one to talk about how she was feeling at that moment, trying not to shed any tears and attempting to forget about them. Then, she heard a knock on the door and looked up to se Merlin entering his own room. He approached her and sat next to her. Merlin took one of the pods from the earplug and asked:

“May I?”

“Of course” Dana nodded.

Then, Merlin took the other part of the earplug and placed it on his ear. He could hear the saddest noise he had ever heard. He didn’t know what it was about it that made him feel sad. Was it the singer or just the tune itself? He didn’t really know, and he turned to see a saddened Dana. She was quiet and felt a sense of isolation, even if the young Warlock was present. Merlin stared at her and asked if she as alright. Dana turned to Merlin and answered:

“I’m fine.”

Merlin nodded and gave a gentle and sympathetic smile, and he moved closer to her. As he kept staring at her, he suddenly heard the person screaming. Merlin flinched a bit and Dana gave out a gentle chuckle. The boy gave a funny glare and felt embarrassed. Then, he remarked:

“The person… screamed.”

“Yes he did” confirmed Dana.

“But why?”

Dana’s smile faded a bit as she looked at the door and answered:

“It’s because the person is in pain… He’s trying to cry out for help because he’s lonely.”

‘ _Just like me_ ’ thought Dana to herself. Merlin felt a bit gloomy about the person’s words. Although he found it intriguing, he felt that it was the saddest thing he had ever heard in his life. He didn’t know why, but he wanted the song to end. Maybe because of its sad nature and the atmosphere that it was giving in his room. As the song finished, Merlin felt relieved and much happier and calm, and so did Dana. Then, Dana turned the thumb-drive off as she started to feel tired. Then, she turned to Merlin and said:

“Maybe we’ll listen to this tomorrow, ok?”

“Alright” affirmed Merlin.

Then, Merlin stood up and went to his bed. Dana laid down on the floor and covered herself with the blanket. The boy wanted to sleep but a thought was bothering him. He then turned to look down at Dana and asked:

“Hey Dana, you know how Morgana tried to attack us today?”

“Yes.”

“She said that you ran away from her a few days ago. Is that true?”

At the sound of the words, Dana turned to Merlin and said with all her honesty:

“I don’t know whether it is. I can’t even remember seeing her.”

Merlin could see that Dana was telling the truth. Her brown eyes were honest and were just as confused as he was. It was obvious that she didn’t know anything about Morgana’s plans. Then, she lied down and greeted him goodnight and Merlin did the same. Then, their slumber took them to the world of their dreams, where Merlin would be peaceful, but would not be the same for Dana.


	15. Chapter 15

It was dark in the dungeons and the Doctor kept trying to find a way out with his sonic screwdriver while Cooper slept on the rotten-smelling hay. The boy woke up at the sound of the man’s device and gave a sleepy and annoyed glare at the Doctor as he asked:

“What are you doing?”

“Trying to find us a way out and continuing the search for your friend.”

“Doctor, it’s already midnight! Can’t you do that in the morning?”

“No because the king will probably sentence us to death or something.”

“Pfft… please, if he did he would be as pathetic as my brown friend.”

“Oi! Don’t be racist to Omar, he’s brilliant! And at least he doesn’t snore!”

“Oh shut up…” muttered the sleepy boy.

The Doctor kept trying to unlock the door with his sonic screwdriver, but it seemed so impossible to do it. The Doctor didn’t know how his device didn’t work in Camelot, since it would usually work at every door, every instrument and certainly for other things too. Then, he stood at the front of the door and felt angry. He felt trapped and stuck inside a room where he found it uncomfortable and dirty, and the Doctor didn’t like that at all. He desperately wanted to get back to the TARDIS since it was his ‘home’ and all the necessary things and the usual place where he would sleep was there (if he did sleep though), but he began to be tired, just like Cooper, who tried to sleep like a grizzly bear. Then, He laid next to Cooper and looked up the ceiling as he spoke loudly:

“I’ll just sleep for the night. I hope we won’t get killed.”

“Oh we won’t… we haven’t even been tried yet” the boy answered.

The Doctor smiled at the boy’s words and took comfort in that. Then, he turned to him and erratically asked.

“How did you know it’s midnight?”

Cooper moved himself to face the Doctor and said “It’s because I brought my phone with me.”

The Doctor gave an irritated and confused glare at Cooper and exclaimed:

“Seriously?! Out of all places, why would you bring your phone to Camelot?!”

“Because I want to, and I need to know the time every day, I can’t help it!” exclaimed Cooper. “And also, I may want to use my phone for other purposes.”

“Umm… Cooper, if I’m thinking that you want to call someone or use the internet, you do know there isn’t any signal here… Because technology doesn’t exist!”

Cooper looked around, shrugged his shoulders and then replied “Oh well, I’ll just use it for music purposes then, so goodnight.”

As soon as he heard those words, the Doctor rolled his eyes and muttered to himself. The teenage boy went back to sleep and the Doctor laid there, thinking about many things, and just like Dana was, he came up with taunting yet wonderful thoughts… the only difference was that he could remember them all. Then, the Doctor shut his eyes and rested for the while, waiting for the morning light.

 

*                       *                    *

 

Dawn appeared and the Doctor kept hitting the door and groaning and complaining about the trial that both of them will have. He was trying to find a way to break the door and break free from the cell that both Cooper and he were locked in. The Doctor kept shouting and protesting, blaming the young wretched teenager for the punishment to see if the guards would come to them and he would try to snatch the keys from them. While the Time Lord did that, Cooper rolled his eyes and he listened to music in his phone. He listened to ‘Hall of Fame’ by the Script and Will.I.Am. He was so bored and so annoyed at the Doctor who kept on screaming like a little toddler… and he thought he was the immature one out of both of them. Then, the Doctor suddenly stopped, took a break from his protesting and droning, turned from side to side in the dungeon and then glared at Cooper, who sat there peacefully listening to music in his phone. The boy looked up at the Doctor and shrugged. The Doctor kept panting from his yelling and asked:

“What are you doing?”

“Listening to music” answered Cooper calmly.

“What song?” the Doctor questioned again.

“Hall of Fame?”

Then, the Doctor groaned and moaned in frustration. He paced around while he was trying to think. Cooper turned his eyes back to his phone and gazed at it. He kept hearing the song in complete tranquility and silence. He closed his eyes and celebrated in his mind a quiet moment without any whining coming from his older companion’s mouth. The Doctor tapped his feet on the hay, still thinking about a plan to get him and Cooper out of the dungeon. He found it a bit hard to get to the guards of Camelot, but then again, it is quite easy to annoy them. Cooper was listening to music while the Doctor felt annoyed because the boy was tranquil, and because he thought of all the action, an idea came into mind. Then, he snapped his fingers and an idea popped up. The Doctor approached Cooper and clapped both his hands in front of the boy’s face. Cooper flinched and took off one of the earplugs that were placed on his ear.

“WHAT?!” yelled an annoying Cooper.

“Cooper, guess what!” said the Doctor.

“…what!”

“I’m going to sing!” answered the Doctor excitedly.

Cooper looked distraught and shocked about the Doctor’s idea. He did not like it at all. He shook his head in startled disapproval and said:

“Doctor… please no… we both know you suck at singing.”

“Yes, well, this is for the guards. They love hearing my lovely voice” spoke the Doctor in bright sarcasm.

“Oh gosh… is this another of your failing plans for you to get a guard to come to us and you steal the key?” asked Cooper.

“Yes…”

“Good luck with that…” muttered the scoffing teenage boy. “It’s not going to work…”

Then, the Doctor got himself away from the boy and stood between the door and Cooper. He stood proudly and smiled his biggest grin as he looked at the guards who were playing with the dice. He relaxed his arms and legs, lifted up his boasting chin and then the horrifying shouting that Cooper feared started echoing around the dungeons.

“I CAME IN LIKE A WRECKING BALL!” the Doctor started screeching out of tune.

‘Oh no…’ Cooper thought to himself as he hit the palm of his hand against his forehead in shame. He could not believe he was hearing the Doctor sing one of the songs he hated the most, and he could not stand it at all. He felt like slapping the Doctor on the face and shake him until he explodes like a coke bottle. Then, Cooper started complaining and started shouting continuously for the Doctor to shut up. Their voices were ascending and becoming louder and louder, and so the guards started to get irritated by the rioting sounds that both males were doing. One of the approached them and stood in front of the door, right where the Doctor expected the guard to.

“Will you quit your whining? This is not a forest!”

“Oh hello” said the Doctor as he attempted to steal the keys. Cooper ran towards the Doctor and kicked his leg. The Doctor groaned and shouted, then turned to the boy and shouted:

“What was that for?!”

“For singing one of the songs I hate the most!” exclaimed Cooper back.

“But I was trying to steal the keys from the guard!” said the Doctor holding the keys up without taking any notice of the standing sentry.

“I don’t care! I would have let you do that if it weren’t because you were singing Miley Cyrus!”

The guard was distraught as he looked at his side and then back at the Doctor.

“GIVE THE KEYS BACK YOU INSULTING MORON!” yelled the guard.

Then, Cooper and the Doctor looked at each other and then back at the angry guard. The man standing outside the cell kept hitting the door of the cell and then, the Doctor shouted:

“GET OUT OF THE WAY YOU WRECKING BALL!”

Then, Cooper looked at the Doctor and said:

“Seriously, out of all insults, you pick that song?”

“Well…” said the Doctor as he turned to Cooper. “I had to think of something.”

Then, they turned to the guard, who gave out a big tantrum about the way both men annoyed him throughout the afternoon, the evening, and now at dawn. He kept throwing insults at the prisoners and the Doctor and Cooper laughed loudly at the frustrated sentry… and then a louder voice ruined all the fun.

“WHAT IS GOING ON?!”

Then, both turned to the direction of the voice and saw Arthur Pendragon approaching them. The king was angry and shocked about the way that things were running at that moment in the dungeons. He did not like the impression of a whining guard and two mischievous prisoners. Arthur then calmed himself down after a moment and ordered:

“Alright, unlock them.”

“Your majesty… they stole the keys” said the guard with an annoyed tone.

Arthur raised an eyebrow and wondered how two irksome and disputable men were able to steal the keys from a guard of Camelot. Never mind that, he thought, he had better things to do and they were more important than that thought. He turned to look at both the Doctor and Cooper and spoke.

“Well, in that case, unlock yourselves and give the keys back to the guard.”

With all the pleasure, the Doctor unlocked the door, and both he and the young boy got out of the dungeon at last. Then, the Doctor gave a mocking glare while he gave back the keys to the guard and then turned to look at Arthur, just like Cooper did.

“You’re coming to the Court room with me” said Arthur. “Follow me.

Then, the three men started walking up the stairs, heading towards the exit of the dungeons, and following the king of Camelot to the Court Room.


	16. Chapter 16

Merlin woke up and dawn came upon them. The sun was slowly rising and the boy gets excited for a new day to begin. He sat up and looked around his room until his head stopped to gaze at the young foreigner, who was still sleeping peacefully, despite the fact that she found the floor a bit uncomfortable. Merlin smiled at the girl, stood up and swept her off her floor to place her on his bed. As soon as Merlin put the girl on the bed, her body adjusted to it quickly and slowly moved to get comfortable. Merlin beamed at her gently as her sleeping face was gazing at his direction. He had never seen anything so wonderful, and he had never been so curious about anyone in his life. His hand tenderly stroke her cheek, and his face tried to go nearer to hers. As he was about to go closer to her, Dana’s dozing eyes blinked and Merlin moved away into his original position. Her eyes slowly unwrapped, and she had finally woken up to see the young Warlock staring at her. Dana looked around and then, gazed back at Merlin as she gave a sleepy smile.

“Good morning!” exclaimed the young Warlock.

“Merlin, it’s not even time yet…” said a sleepy Dana.

“I know. But I wanted to make sure that you were alright.”

Dana’s tired smile grew wider as she sat up and said “I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?” asked the boy in an annoying manner.

“Yes!” said Dana as she shoved him a bit.

Merlin laughed and stopped asking her. Dana seemed to have forgotten everything about yesterday and how she felt at that night. It was a good sign for Merlin. He knew that Dana felt better through her beauty sleep, so he stopped worrying about her. Then, both became quiet as they smiled at each other. It was an awkward, yet a wonderful moment in which the two of them would be sitting on the bed, talking and irritating each other. Then, Dana broke the silence and asked:

“So what are we going to do today?”

“Mmm… I’m not sure yet” answered Merlin. “Maybe follow Arthur again?”

“Would that also mean irritating him?” said a sarcastic Dana.

“Yes” affirmed Merlin.

Then, both laughed and unsteadily started shoving each other. As they kept doing that, Merlin said in a loud voice:

“Whoever gets shoved off the bed loses!”

“Alright, you’re on!”

Then, Dana pushed Merlin out of bed and he landed on the ground, where the girl slept. Dana raised both her arms up and her hands her formed into fists as she boasted about winning the game. Merlin chuckled a bit and gave a funny gaze at her. Then, Merlin turned to Dana’s pillow and saw that the mp3 thumb-drive and the earplugs were next to it. He snatched them and gave them to the girl. Dana grabbed them and put the pods on her ear and turned on the thumb-drive player. She then, kept passing every song that she did not want to listen to while Merlin stood up and then sat on his bed again. Then, a song Dana felt like listening to popped up in her ears. She could hear Natalie Bassingthwaighte’s voice singing “1000 stars”. It made her feel like grabbing a star and gazing at it forever. She was at peace as soon as she heard the song. As Dana was listening to the device, Merlin gave a curious stare at her and raised an eyebrow. Then, he sat on Dana’s right side and grabbed the other ear-pod from her ear and placed it on his. He listened to the song and closed his eyes in serenity. Even if he was in his bedroom, he would picture himself being in a meadow that would be full of night-time glistening stars which a person could grab from the sky. Technically that would be impossible, but that was his depiction in his head. He opened his eyes and then stared at Dana, who was humming the tune out loud in peace. Merlin looked at her and raised his eyebrow. He laughed at her and then, Dana turned to him and asked:

“What? What is it?”

“You’re very funny” answered Merlin in a chuckle.

“As are you” added Dana.

Both of them cockled and kept listening to the song. Then, they gazed at each other and smiled. Merlin was still curious about the girl’s life and he wondered what her world would have been like if he went there. He gave a quizzical, yet such a gentle look at the girl’s eyes. Dana stared at him tenderly and chuckled a bit as he lifted her chin gently. The girl’s smile faded a bit as the Warlock tried to get closer to her. However, she stopped him, placing her hand on his chest. Merlin opened his eyes and realized what he was doing. He then sat at the same position and thought to himself ‘What was I thinking?’ He then turned to Dana and apologized.

“Sorry about that. I… I…” stammered Merlin.

“It’s alright” said Dana as she grinned at him.

Merlin grinned back and then, both of them sat there in peace and quiet. The boy gazed at Dana again and smiled at her, while the girl closed her eyes and pictured a meadow full of floating stars. Merlin had never seen anything so wonderful. It felt like he was watching an extraordinary creature that came out of nowhere and brought a wondrous peace in his life. He had never seen and met anyone like her at all. As he was trying to get nearer, Gaius opened the door and greeted them.

“Good morning Merlin.”

Then, Merlin turned around and saw Gaius giving him an amused smile of his. Dana turned to Merlin and saw that he was nearer than he was a few minutes ago. The girl turned red and looked at the old man, who also greeted her.

“Good morning Dana.”

“Good morning,” Dana hesitated a bit, “Gaius.”

Gaius nodded to both of them and told them that breakfast was ready for them. As soon as they heard the word ‘breakfast’ Dana and Merlin looked at each other excitedly and were about to ran towards the physician’s room, but Gaius stopped them.

“Not until both of you get changed.”

Merlin and Dana raised their eyebrows at the same time and looked at each other, and then back at the Court Physician.

“Arthur wants both of you straight after breakfast. The two men who came here yesterday seem to want to cause a riot, and he needs both of you to keep them calm.”

Both youngsters nodded and stared at each other again. They knew they had to be fast to be there before the strangers cause more apparent havoc in the castle.

“You first” said Merlin.

Dana nodded, and then, both Merlin and Gaius got out of the room for her to change into her clothes. Dana looked around and went to the cupboard of Merlin. She took out the same garments and changed into them, while she wondered who the two men in the jail were.


	17. Chapter 17

After half an hour of dressing up, eating breakfast and preparing their lunch, Merlin and Dana walked on their way to the Court Room.

While they did that, Arthur sat at the opposite side to the Doctor and Cooper of the large table, which was set nice and straight in the room, and reflected the bright light of the sun. Then, both Dana and Merlin arrived and Arthur turned, seemingly pleased and relieved about their entrance.

“Ah! You’re both here!”

Both of them nodded and then stood at the right side of the king. Then, Arthur was about to proceed with his questioning, but both prisoners seemed to have their attention on someone else. Both of them have dropped their mouths open in shock and could not believe what they were seeing. It was too good to be true. They had found the perfect excuse for them to be freed. They were looking at the girl who glared around the room and tried to whistle, but no sound came from her lips. Then, Cooper slowly smiled in surprise and curiosity and asked:

“Oh my God! Dana, is that you?!”

Then, Dana turned to the direct voice and looked at both of the men. She could recognize both of them and was shocked to find them both in Camelot, just like she initiated her strange adventure in the castle.

“Cooper? Doctor? What are you both doing here?” questioned Dana in shocked curiosity.

“We were looking for you!” exclaimed the Doctor as he erratically stood up from his seat.

“SIT DOWN!” exclaimed the irritated king.

Then, the Doctor sat down and saw that he made the king angry. The Time Lord did not like the glare he was getting from the Pendragon, and he realized that he had overdone his rioting screams. Arthur sighed, getting all his fume out and became serene. Then, he turned to Dana and asked:

“Do you know them?”

“I do sire…” admitted Dana. “Both of them are my friends.”

Arthur nodded, wondering why the girl would rather have friends such as these two bickering men. But never mind that, he thought. He turned to the two men sitting opposite to him and then, he proceeded with the questioning.

“Well, I don’t know what to say to you. You caused a big riot in the dungeons and annoyed one of my guards, took the keys and now you are irritating me. What should I do with you?”

“…you’re going to let us out because Dana’s our friend?” asked Cooper.

“No” said Arthur.

The Doctor and Cooper looked disillusioned. Arthur glared right into them and said:

“Because you are the most irritating men that I have ever encountered.”

“Just for that?” asked the Doctor.

“You insulted one of my guards at dawn and he ended up doing an uncontrollable outburst. I am not happy about that.”

The Doctor and Cooper widened their eyes in amusement and laughed at Arthur Pendragon. The king was so infuriated at them that he stood up and banged the table to shut them up. The Doctor and Cooper stopped laughing and at that moment, they looked scared, rather than laughing at those moments they had in the dungeons. Arthur gave an extreme serious look at them and said:

“You find it amusing?”

The Doctor and Cooper gave no response. They didn’t know how to answer the king and if they were supposed to reply the question. Then, Arthur continued to talk.

“You called my guard… a ‘Wrecking Ball’…”

Then, Dana burst out laughing. Merlin and Arthur turned to stare at he young foreigner, and Cooper and the Doctor smiled along with her. Merlin raised an eyebrow and Arthur didn’t seem happy about Dana’s reaction. Then, the girl looked at Arthur, who asked her:

“Do you find it funny?”

“…I’m sorry your majesty, but I do. Those words don’t even have the meaning of an insult.”

“What then? A compliment?” questioned Arthur.

“No sire, it is neither a compliment nor an insult.”

Arthur found the girl’s answer strange. How could such words be neither an insult nor a compliment if the guard got offended by them in the morning?

“Then what is it?” he asked.

“…It’s a song.”

Arthur hoisted his eyebrows in surprise and Merlin was trying to hold his laughter. The Doctor and Cooper cockled silently and Arthur looked at them. Both men stopped, and the king stared back at Dana.

“Very odd to choose a song for an insult.”

“It is sire, I do wonder why my friends did that.”

Arthur nodded in agreement, but he wasn’t sure whether he was to believe his guest.

“Alright, I need proof. Can someone actually sing that wretched song so I know that you’re telling the truth?”

“I’ll do it!” exclaimed the Doctor in excitement.

“NO!” exclaimed both Cooper and Arthur.

Then, Cooper and Arthur looked eat each other, and back at the Doctor. Dana and Merlin silently burst out in laughter and then, the young king was looking at Cooper.

“How about you?”

Cooper was shocked at the fact that the king just asked him to sing the tune that he hated the most.

“I’m sorry your Majesty, but I hate that song. There is no way I’ll sing it.”

Then Arthur was looking around the room and suddenly, his eyes landed on the girl. His smile grew wider.

“Perhaps you can” said the king.

Dana turned her eyes at the man in shock. She looked at Merlin, who shrugged, and then glared back at the king.

“Oh no sire, I don’t really sing.”

“Oh come on Dana! I want to get out of here!” yelled the Doctor in the background.

Cooper nudged the Doctor, who groaned and Arthur raised an eyebrow. He didn’t know why she would refuse to do such a thing.

“Dana, I need proof that it isn’t an insult. Please do.”

Dana could not deny the king once more. She refused his request once, and she’s not going to do it again. And so she started to intone a song that she hated, just like Cooper hated it.

“ _I came in like a wrecking ball_ …” she started to resonate.

While she was singing, all eyes and ears were laid at the girl. The Doctor and Cooper felt relieved that Dana was giving them a chance to be pardoned by the king (since they used it as an insult). Merlin found it so unnatural, yet such a beautiful voice that it made him peaceful. Arthur just started at her with a serious glare of his and found the words strange. When Dana finished, Merlin couldn’t stop smiling at the girl and the Doctor and Cooper silently clapped. Dana darted her eyes on both men, indicating them to shut up. Then, the Doctor and Cooper stopped. The girl turned back to stare at the King, who looked at her curiously. Then, he glared at the two men and said:

“No wonder the guard found it to be an insult. You sounded horrible.”

Then, everyone in the room laughed since it was something unexpected to be told. The king had pardoned the Doctor and Cooper, who now seemed pleased with Arthur. Merlin smiled while looking at what was happening. Dana’s focus was suddenly taken by something sinister and all the voices around her faded away. There was a grey and old statue of an angel standing at the corner of the Court Room which stood in tormenting silence. Dana gulped and got scared by its sight. The Angel seemed to give out a roaring and screaming glare at the girl. Dana kept trying to tell herself that it was just her imagination, yet somehow it seemed real. It’s demonic hand seemed to reach out to her and his mouth seemed to be shrieking for something. She felt as if she had seen that statue before, but she did not remember where. She could not take her eyes of it, fearing what the object could do to her if she looked away. Suddenly, a familiar voice ascended and calling her. She didn’t care who kept calling her, she was more scared of the demonic Angel that stared at her. Dana’s eyes were shining, trying to hold her tears. Then, someone turned her around and took away her attention towards the Angel. Suddenly, it was Merlin who she was looking at.

“Dana, are you…?” Merlin asked.

Before he could finish the question, Dana gave up. She hyperventilated, her tears started running down her cheeks and she threw herself at him with a hug, trying to cover her face away from everyone else. King Arthur, the Doctor and Cooper turned their eyes on Merlin and Dana. The king gazed at her curiously and the Doctor seemed curious, yet so suspicious about the girl, and Cooper started to get a bit worried about his friend.

“Dana, what’s wrong?” asked the Doctor.

Dana did not respond. She kept crying, and the Warlock did not know what to do. Merlin didn’t know what was wrong with her, and he felt even more concerned than he was last night. All he could do was to try his best to comfort her, even though he didn’t know what was bothering the foreigner. He embraced her back and tried to calm her down. Dana hushed at his gentle whisper.

“It’s alright, I’m here” he assured her.

Dana nodded, closed her eyes and leaned her head on Merlin’s chest. She could hear his heartbeat, and his embrace was the most tranquilizing she had ever felt. She felt safe at his arms, and she didn’t want to let go of him, and Merlin felt the same; he didn’t want to let go of her either. Arthur looked awkwardly at Cooper and the Doctor. Cooper shrugged and the Doctor gave a concerned gaze. Then, Arthur turned to Dana and Merlin.

“Merlin, see to her that she gets some fresh air. She might need that” said Arthur.

Merlin nodded and obeyed the king. He escorted Dana out of the Court Room, and only Arthur, the Doctor and Cooper were left. Arthur stared at them and asked:

“So, you’re both strangers. Where do you come from?”

The Doctor and Cooper stared right at the king. The Doctor answered the king honestly “we came from the future, and so did Dana.”

Arthur did not know what to think. He wanted to cockle at their words, but he could see their sincerity in their eyes. He knew it was something he shouldn’t laugh about, and as a king he should be polite. However, he was a bit doubtful, and so he asked more questions.

“The future?”

The Doctor and Cooper nodded. Arthur wondered how, since it was impossible, but then he realized he had all the proof: Dana’s knowledge of what the Doctor and Cooper were yelling about, the Doctor and Cooper’s strange way of speaking, and also Cooper’s strange accent, now it seemed so obvious to Arthur that they were both telling the truth.

“Alright, I believe you.”

The Doctor and Cooper smiled at him in delight and Arthur returned the grin to them.

“Would you like me to show you around the castle?”

The Doctor and Cooper nodded excitedly and got out of the seats. Arthur then stood up and escorted both men out of the room, ready to show them more parts of the castle, and he took them also as guests, just like he did with the young foreigner. While he walked outside, he seemed a bit worried about Dana. She was fine earlier, but then she suddenly seemed scared. He wondered why she had felt like that if there was nothing frightful about the Court Room. Was it the type of environment she was in? Or was it the two friends that came to Camelot? ‘No, it wouldn’t be either of those things’ he thought, ‘it was definitely something else.’ It seemed as if Dana had seen something that neither Merlin, nor the Doctor or Cooper had seen, but whatever it was that bothered her, Arthur was willing to find out what was it that bothered her… or was it a someone?


	18. Chapter 18

Merlin and Dana sat at the border of Camelot again, except they sat separately. Both of them had finished eating lunch and both looked at different directions. Merlin looked up at the sky while Dana was fidgeting with her thumb-drive player. She was listening to “Save you” by Simple Plan. Just as she was hearing it, she felt that she needed someone to save her from her hallucinations… or even memories if they were. The only thing she was thinking about right now was the figure that gazed at her. She felt horrified and shocked, even if she was listening to a song. She found it to be one of the scariest things that she had ever seen with her eyes. Dana sat there while she kept thinking of that statue that glared at her. Merlin stared at her, grinned and decided to approach her. He stood up and walked towards her. He patted her shoulder and asked:

“May I?”

Dana nodded, and Merlin sat next to her. The girl grabbed her other pod and placed it on Merlin’s left ear. The boy listened to the music, along with Dana. He found a certain dislike towards this song. It wasn’t the person’s voice, it wasn’t the sounds that were made and it wasn’t the mood of it; Merlin didn’t really feel like listening to it. He found it so boring, that no words could ever describe how much he wanted to walk away, go all the way back to the physician’s room and scream at his pillow. As he thought that, he gave a funny glare to the grass. Dana looked at the boy and gave a humorous look as she asked:

“You don’t like it?”

Merlin shook his head. He confirmed his aversion towards the song. He couldn’t stand it, and he really had to ask her one question about her device.

“Do we have to listen to it and wait for another song?” he wondered.

“Oh no, we don’t have to. If you want I can change it” Dana answered.

Then, a sudden smile appeared on Merlin’s face and he nodded. He was so surprised that her thumb-drive player was able to change a song. Dana smiled a bit and pressed a button and skipped the current song to the next. The next tune sounded happier than the previous despite its unnatural noises, and the girl was glad to hear the song. It had been a long time since she had listened to Green Day’s “Last Night on Earth”, and she had just remembered how strange and beautiful it was, especially now it was more so since Merlin sat next to her. He sat there, raising his eyebrow and giving a strange glare at the ground. Dana grinned at the sight of him and then, Merlin looked back at her and smiled. He chuckled a bit and remarked:

“This song is strange.”

“Right…” said Dana. “And you aren’t?”

The girl rubbed the boy’s nose with her pointing finger. Merlin’s eyes were glaring at her finger, and he laughed even more as his cheeks got rosy. Dana smiled for a bit, and then, her grin faded as she kept hearing the resonation. She would remember how she used to be obsessed with Green Day’s songs, how she would sing along to them without a care and not having to worry about what everyone else thought of her. That was until she got herself introduced to the teenage life, where ruining events, like relationships, rebellion and such, happened in her life. Dana would remember how she had had five of those wretched relationships, and the last one she had was the hardest one to forget and the most painful one of them all. Of course, how could she forget? It was months ago that Rob Mackay had broken up with her through the phone with tears and apologetic guilt (if that’s what she would like to call it), making her cry and therefore making the situation a whole lot dramatic. Dana was so annoyed about the fact that one week later, he began another relationship while she was trying to get over him, and so she never took things lightly when it came to the topic of that boy. She thought he was a person with good intentions, but she was wrong. That meant to her that all that time, Rob Mackay was just ridiculing her feelings since he knew her reputation to be as one who would never be loved. She was still trying to get over it, and from that moment on she had always wondered whether he actually had feelings for her when they were both together and if she meant something to him. She even wondered if she were ever to find true love again after that damned affiliation. Waking up into Camelot made everything a lot more confusing for Dana. Not in the time and place and not about the people who lived there, but her feelings. She felt as if something kept holding on to that past relationship as if it were a tough rope from a well, yet she gradually started hating Rob, dissolving all that care she had for him like a powder spreading in water turning that medicine into hatred, and becoming jealous of him for living a happier life than she was before the event where she got hit by the car at the road. She thought he didn’t deserve a happy life, especially after realizing that he had used his apologizing habit to make her feel guilty, using it for reverse-psychology and calling her paranoid and a liar when her instincts were true to her and her ears had very good hearing. And ever since she woke up in the Warlock’s bedroom and started to get to know Merlin better, her heart began to feel that certain warmth again, despite the few days they had spent together, just like she had felt back when she fell for the pitiful Australian. Dana didn’t know why she was beginning to feel that way, but she knew that she didn’t want it to grow into anything else, or else it might ruin her quick and precious friendship she was having at that precise moment with Merlin. She didn’t want her precious friendship to become damaged. Merlin had welcomed her the whole time, he took her in his arms, carried her into his bedroom when she was unconscious, and so far in those three days, for the first time, she hadn’t felt any guilt at all, nor anger. She didn’t want Merlin to become like the corrupted and selfish Australian boy who thinks of women as a commodity, rather than people, and wants one for desperation. ‘No, Merlin wouldn’t become like Rob, he’s far too gentle to be like him, and he’s far too good for that’ she thought. How that song made her think about all these things, she had no idea, but it was relevant to all the memories she had remembered. ‘Wait, how did Rob come into mind? He’s not even here and I hate him!’ thought Dana to herself. Then, she shook her head to rub away the thought of her previous ‘lover’ and went on looking at the sky. Then, a sudden gentle hand caressed her cheek. She turned her face to the direction where the hand came from, and she saw Merlin smiling at her gently. Her heart suddenly started to thump loud in her ears. The boy gave a gentle smile and his eyes gazed tenderly at hers. His eyes were shining like the night sky. His blue eyes were even more beautiful to the girl when she looked into them. As she got herself lost in his eyes, she could still feel his thumb caressing her skin, and she became scared. Dana was so scared about her feelings growing into something much bigger. She feared her feelings more than people, they were more scary than Morgana herself, and more than she had ever feared the statue she had seen an hour ago. It was much more frightful than those things. She sat still while she stared at Merlin, who kept stroking her. He was still smiling at her and said:

“You had a tear running down.”

Dana didn’t even realize it, but she was crying. She turned away and wiped her eyes and felt very embarrassed. Merlin grabbed her gently and she made her face him. He put her arm around her and kept caressing her gently with the other hand. Dana’s heart kept beating faster than it was before. She felt like running into the forest of Ascetir and hiding herself. Merlin chuckled a bit as he gazed at her and Dana asked:

“What’s so funny?”

“Dana, you don’t have to hide anything from me. Tell me what’s wrong.”

“N-nothing’s wrong” answered Dana.

Merlin raised an eyebrow and asked teasingly “Is it that you like me?”

At those words, Dana’s mouth dropped open and she could not speak. For some reason she didn’t know how to answer him. Did she like him? Or was she just giving herself that illusion because she missed the hateful boy so much that she wanted to forget about him? Dana giggled a bit and asked:

“What makes you think that?”

“The way you look at me” said Merlin.

Dana felt awkward and wanted to turn away. She even felt like sprinting all the way to Gaius and talking to him about how she was feeling when it all came to the Warlock despite how uncomfortable she would be. She kept gazing at the boy, who continued talking.

“I could even hear your heartbeat” Merlin remarked.

Dana’s cheeks turned red. Her lips shook and her eyes widened a bit. She had no words to say to him. She could only feel embarrassed and tried denying what Merlin had just said.

“No, I-I don’t like you that way, it’s not that… I-I…”

Merlin hushed her with his finger in front of her lips, shutting her into a wonderful silence. Dana’s breath quivered, and she felt a tingle on her lips from the Warlock’s finger. He looked at her lovingly, and Dana’s heart stopped. She wanted to run but she couldn’t move. She could not feel her fingers, nor her toes. She could only feel her heart thump up and down, its beats ringing in her ear while she looked at him. Merlin lifted up her chin gently and came closer to her. Dana’s eyes became even more teary as she could feel his breath against hers, and her fright towards her unknown feelings grew. As Green Day’s song finished, Merlin’s lips were about to touch hers until an irritating and familiar voice disturbed them both.

“AH! There you are!” exclaimed the Doctor.

Merlin and Dana turned around to see the Doctor and Cooper walking towards them. Merlin rolled his eyes a bit and Dana stared at them. She felt relieved yet so annoyed about both males’ disruption.

“We’re staying in Camelot!” spoke the Doctor with enthusiasm.

The Doctor ran excitedly towards them and Cooper walked in a tired pace as he approached the man. He looked at the Doctor with his worn-out darting eyes and said:

“Doctor, I think you may have interrupted something.”

“What? What did I interrupt?” asked the Doctor.

Cooper’s eyes darted at Merlin and Dana’s direction, pointing out towards them. The Doctor turned to the direction of the youngsters and realized what he had interrupted.

“Oh…” said the Doctor awkwardly. Then, he slowly gave a cheeky grin and mocked “Is this supposed to be a date of some sort?”

“Doctor!” exclaimed Cooper as he nudged him.

The Doctor yelped and Cooper looked at him with an annoyed glare. The Time Lord shrugged his shoulder and gave Cooper a weird glare. While the Doctor and the young boy gave each other looks, the Warlock and the girl sat there gawkily as they stared at each other. As Merlin was about to approach her lips again, Dana sighed, stood up and said:

“I’m going back to Camelot.”

Merlin seemed surprised. He blinked in confusion and both Cooper and the Doctor turned to her direction. Merlin didn’t want her to go, not now! Not after he almost kissed her. Not after he had confirmed his own feelings for her despite the few days they have met. He didn’t feel this way for a very long time and it made him happy. He didn’t want her to go. He wanted her to stay, and he didn’t want her out of his sight. He knew he started to fall in love with he and he wanted to pursue her heart. As frustrated as he was, Merlin stood up and decided to go with her. He gave an annoyed frown at the Doctor and Cooper and then turned to Dana’s direction and stopped her for the moment.

“Wait!” exclaimed Merlin.

Dana turned around and looked at the boy. Then, Merlin told her that he was going to escort her back to the palace. Dana nodded, gave a soft beam and then both of them walked towards the citadel. As both of them walked, Dana leaned her head on Merlin’s arm and the young Warlock smiled at her and placed his hand on the young girl’s. The Doctor and Cooper stood there in silence. The Doctor felt curious and irritated as he asked:

“Why are they leaving now?”

“Maybe because they find you annoying” answered Cooper as he patted the Time Lord’s shoulders and walked towards Camelot. The Doctor gave an annoyed grunt and followed Cooper to the city.


	19. Chapter 19

Merlin came into the Court Physician’s room and closed the door. Gaius stopped looking at his books and saw Merlin. The old man stood up and said:

“You’re early today.”

Merlin nodded and looked nervous. Gaius knew that wasn’t a good sign. Whatever it was that bothered the Warlock, the old man wanted to help him.

“Where’s Dana?” Gaius asked.

“She went to see Arthur for some sword lessons” answered Merlin.

Gaius nodded and Merlin still didn’t look happy. The Court Physician looked at the man and asked:

“What’s the matter Merlin?”

“It’s… Dana” said Merlin as he sat next to Gaius.

“Why? Is there something wrong with her?”

“No Gaius, it’s not that.”

“Is it something she said?”

“No, nothing like that.”

Gaius was surprised that it was neither of those. With a person such as Dana, since she was younger than Merlin, things as such would bother the Warlock already. But that didn’t seem to be the case. This was different. Gaius was very curious to know what the matter with the young man was.

“Then what’s wrong?”

Merlin hesitated for a moment. He didn’t know whether he wanted to tell the physician what bothered him. Gaius gave a patient stare and waited for the boy to tell him what was wrong. Then, Merlin gave out a big sigh and finally told the Physician what bothered him. He could not hide his honesty from his friend.

“I think I may be developing some feelings for her.”

The old man nodded, but he didn’t know what Merlin meant by that.

“What do you mean about that” questioned the Physician.

“I…” stammered Merlin.

He was still unsure about telling the Physician what was the matter. Gaius waited for the young boy to speak. Merlin gave out an uncomfortable groan and said:

“I think I may be falling in love with her.”

Then, Gaius widened his eyes a bit and nodded uncomfortably. Merlin gave out his awkward smile and nodded too. Both men sat there awkwardly and stared at each other. Gaius was trying to get the words to sink in. He found it amusing, yet so gawky. “Was that what bothered Merlin? It’s surprising that it took him a few days to figure that out” thought the old man. But Gaius had to be polite. He couldn’t just make fun of the boy at that precise moment. Then, Gaius said:

“Really? What makes you think that?”

“I don’t know… maybe the way I have been acting around her.”

“Ah! Of course” remarked the old man as he nodded.

Merlin was relieved that Gaius didn’t have a shocked or harsh reaction towards his feelings. He knew he could tell anything to the old man and as always, he was going to be the one true friend whom he could trust, and so he talked a bit more about how he felt.

“Gaius, I don’t know what it is, but something about her makes me like her very much…”

“Right” said Gaius.

“Gaius, she’s beautiful!”

Then, Gaius stopped speaking and dropped his mouth, about to speak a word. ‘Did Merlin just say that?’ he wondered. Well, of course he did, he just heard it a minute ago. But Gaius didn’t want to be rude and he didn’t want to comment with a rude answer, and so he kept his mouth shut and his eyes were widened in awkwardness. Gaius nodded and questioned:

“What makes you think that?”

“It’s something about her that… makes her beautiful. It’s not just the appearance Gaius, it’s also her personality.”

Gaius did not know how to answer every comment that Merlin makes every second he would talk about Dana. He had never had such a talk with the young boy.

“And she’s full of surprises!” exclaimed Merlin. “Yes, see… she said that she didn’t have fighting skills but she does. It was wonderful and surprising! She also comes from the future and she has the most curious devices. I don’t know Gaius, but she is strange and she is…”

Now Gaius was starting to get concerned. “Merlin” the man stopped him.

Merlin stopped babbling about the foreigner and shut his mouth as he looked attentively at the Court Physician. Merlin gulped a bit, worried about what Gaius had to say and asked:

“Yes Gaius?”

“I’m starting to get a bit concerned about you.”

Merlin felt bad. He knew that he had talked too much between the two of them. “I’m really sorry Gaius. I talk too much for today.”

“It’s alright Merlin, I understand. But you seem to certain about your feelings.”

“Yes…”

Gaius smiled at Merlin and asked “How about your wait until she has been here for a while? You never know whether your feelings change?”

Merlin nodded and agreed with Gaius. He did have a good point. Then, Gaius was struck with another question he could not answer. He looked at Merlin and asked:

“How did she get here in Camelot?”

“I don’t know. She didn’t tell me” responded Merlin.

“Maybe you should ask” suggested Gaius.

“I will tonight. I’m sure she won’t mind” said Merlin with a grin.

Gaius nodded and patted Merlin on the back. He grinned back at him and said:

“Off you go then.”

Merlin gave a big smile and ran out of the Physician’s room and out to the city. Once Merlin closed the door, Gaius looked concerned about both Merlin and the girl. He feared for the two of them to assume things about one another, and he worried that Dana might have those feelings for the young Warlock too. Gaius sat there, thinking about both of them and waited for Dana so he could speak to her.

 


	20. Chapter 20

After they had arrived to Camelot, Dana walked towards the King and Queen’s quarters. She needed something to get her mind off things. She knocked on the door and heard Guinevere’s voice inviting her in. Dana opened the door, went into the room and closed it. She saw the queen sitting at the table, who gave out her gentle and loving smile.

“Dana!” said the queen happily. “What can I do for you?”

“I’m sorry to ask my queen, but is your husband nearby?”

“Not at the moment but he’ll be coming around shortly. Why do you ask?”

“I just want to take some sword lessons with him.”

“Oh that’s wonderful!” commented the queen.

“Thanks…” muttered Dana.

Guinevere tilted her head as she looked at the girl. She knew there was something wrong with her. She stood up from her seat and approached her. Dana looked up as the queen gave her a gentle smile and patted her arm as she asked:

“Is there something wrong?”

“Oh, nothing’s wrong” lied Dana.

“Dana, you don’t have to hide anything from me. I know there’s something wrong with you.”

Dana looked tense and shaky at the queen. How was she supposed to tell her about her day? She saw a statue of a terrifying angel that terrorized her during the questioning of the Doctor and Cooper, Merlin almost kissed her while she still tried to get over her ex-boyfriend… How was she supposed to be fine? How could Guinevere understand any of those things? All those mixed feelings made her stomach sick, and her eyes looked as teary as a waterfall and they shone brightly, reflecting the light from the window. She wanted to cry, but she knew she had to keep calm and pretend that there was nothing wrong. She had to look fine.

“You can always tell me anything” assured Guinevere.

Dana wanted to cry even more when the queen said those words. No, she couldn’t do that in front of her. She had to look happy. Dana didn’t want her thinking that they weren’t hospitable enough, of course they are. Arthur, Gwen, Gaius, Merlin and the knights of Camelot… they were the nicest people Dana had ever met. She didn’t want Guinevere to look worried. She had to think of something to fill her answer… and suddenly her mouth spilled some erratic words she didn’t want to say.

“I-it’s just that I have mixed feelings.”

Guinevere raised both her eyebrows in surprise and widened her tender eyes a bit. Dana nodded awkwardly and the queen was still staring at her in a bit of a startle.

“Ah! You have mixed feelings?”

Dana gave out her stretched and gawky smile and nodded continuously. She was very embarrassed about the reply she gave to the queen and could not help but think about how uncomfortable she felt. ‘Why did I have to say that?’ thought Dana to herself. It was a stupid answer, but she could not change the past, could she? Never mind that, it was done. She shook her head a bit and kept gazing at Arthur’s wife who kept glancing and smiling gently at her.

“Well, I hope you feel better then” the queen said.

“Yes, yes well… thank you” hesitated Dana. She still smiled awkwardly and then changed the topic. “So… Arthur said yesterday that you were both going to have an heir.”

“Yes we are” affirmed Guinevere.

“Do you know what you’re going to name the baby?”

“I don’t know yet, but if it is a boy Arthur would like to name him Bartholomew.”

Dana gave a nod and dropped her mouth open. It was surprising to her that Arthur would use one of the twelve Apostle’s name as his son’s. No matter, it was a good name. Dana smiled and remarked:

“That’s a nice name.”

“Thank you Dana” answered the woman.

“But what if it is a girl?” Dana asked.

Guinevere smiled and laughed as she answered “I guess Arthur and I would have to think about that.”

Then, the door opened and both Guinevere and Dana turned around to see Arthur Pendragon arrive into the bedroom. Arthur looked at Guinevere and gave a loving smile and then, he saw Dana and felt surprised.

“Ah! Dana, I didn’t expect to see you at this time” said Arthur.

“My apologies my lord…” spoke Dana. “But I was wondering if I would be able to be taught some skills.”

Arthur seemed dazed and hoisted his eyebrows. He didn’t know what Dana was talking about.

“Skills?” he questioned.

“Dana would like to take some sword fighting lessons” remarked Gwen.

Of course, he did say to her yesterday that he could teach her how to fight. How could he have forgotten? “Oh yes” said Arthur as he remembered. “Would you like them now?”

“Yes please” replied the girl.

“Alright, we’ll go then.”

Dana ginned and walked out the door of the bedroom. Before Arthur could do the same, Guinevere stood up and called him. Then, the king turned around to face his wife and asked:

“Yes my love?”

“Please look after her.”

“You know I will Guinevere.”

Guinevere looked a bit concerned and mouthed “She has some mixed feelings apparently.”

Arthur raised one of his eyebrows and gave a bit of a funny look. He hadn’t heard of anyone else (except of Merlin) who had such things. He wondered what his wife meant.

“What do you mean? Is she alright?” he asked with a whisper.

“I don’t know, she won’t tell me anything. She didn’t seem happy when she came inside.”

Arthur was thinking about what Guinevere just said to him. He knew he had to heed them since guests were supposingly and traditionally treated well. Was something bothering her today? ‘Oh yes, she did cry this morning after the questioning of the Doctor and Cooper’ Arthur thought to himself. He still wondered why though. He treated her as best as he could. Everyone seemed kind to her, even the knights of Camelot were. Surprisingly enough, Merlin was just beyond kind, he suspected him to have some ‘feelings’ for the girl. Arthur was concerned whether that was enough for her.

“I’ll look after her” affirmed Arthur. “I promise.”

Then, there was a moment of silence as both Guinevere and Arthur gave each other loving smiles. Their eyes sparkled at the light coming into the room and the afterglow of love span around the room. Arthur sighed a bit and spoke:

“I’ll be back my dear.”

Guinevere nodded and then, blew a kiss at her husband’s direction. Arthur chuckled a bit and did the same for her. Then, he waved at her and left with Dana to do their training.


	21. Chapter 21

Arthur and Dana had arrived to the training yard and everything seemed to be ready. There was a scarecrow dressed with armor waiting for them along with two swords. Dana knew the king was expecting to teach her a lesson in fighting someday soon. The girl turned to Arthur and he nodded in pride. Dana smiled and said:

“You knew!”

Arthur still nodded and said “Yes well, I thought maybe a little bit of action could make the day a little bit more interesting, and I hoped for you to ask for it.”

Dana grinned and thanked the king. The man accepted her gratitude, took the smaller sword and gave it to the girl. The foreigner was a bit scared of holding the sword. Although it was lighter than she thought, she was afraid of hurting the king and so she decided to be careful with it. Arthur smiled and said:

“You hold a sword very well.”

“Oh! I would sometimes pretend that some of the sticks at home were weapons.”

“Ah!” he thought so. “Of course, now would you care to attack the scarecrow?”

“Ummm… your majesty?” Dana asked.

“It’s just to test your strength” answered Arthur as his eyes pointed towards the standing object.

Dana nodded and then, turned around to face the scarecrow. The young foreigner doubted whether she was strong enough to even hit the stand. Then, she pictured Rob Mackay mocking, insulting and ridiculing her in front of the king, or so to speak, more accurately he would say things he didn’t really mean. She had remembered all the promises he made and all the things he had said. They were all meaningless and ridiculous. Although it was nothing more than a lifeless object, her spirit felt like letting out her anger and kill the unrealistic wretched boy. She clutched hard onto the sword as she could hear his taunting words and snorting laughter and suddenly with a loud grunt, she swang the sword towards the scarecrow and then kept breaking the scarecrow and its armor. She kept swaggering the sword back and forth and Arthur raised his eyebrows and looked a bit chocked, and suddenly, she cut off its head with all her might. Arthur widened his eyes in astonishment and Dana was a bit exhausted. She saw the head of the scarecrow fall to the ground and she got surprised as to how strong she was when she was anguished. Arthur could not help but clap and laugh in surprise and impression.

“Wow Dana! Well done!” the king exclaimed. “Out of all the people I have trained, no one had ever cut its head off, and this is your first basic training!”

Dana still couldn’t believe what she had done just a few seconds ago. Did her anger really make her stronger than she was physically? She did not know, but she liked the fact that it was her who had done that.

“Thank you your majesty!” said Dana with gratitude towards his compliment. “I didn’t even think I’d be able to do that.”

“Well, you have to believe that you can” said Arthur as he swang his sword around.

Dana gulped a bit and wondered why the king was swaggering his sword around. He then got himself steady as he was in a position where he was ready to attack.

“You ready for a duel?” asked the king.

“Ummm… What if I said no?” replied Dana with a question.

“Then maybe we could do that next time, when you’re ready” said Arthur as he pierced his sword through the grass.

Dana sighed in relief, wanting to rest from the slashing she had done to the scarecrow dressed up in knight’s armor. She had let her anger out on that thing, but cutting its head off wasn’t enough. Dana was still sad about her memories and scared about her developing feelings towards Merlin. It was so ridiculous to her! She had just met him two days ago and now she was already starting to fall for him? What had gotten into her? But she had to calm her mind down. She couldn’t let the king know how she felt or else she could be made fun off, just like everyone else did to her just for being honest. Arthur started to get a bit concerned about her and so he approached her. The king looked at her and patted her shoulder. Dana looked up at the man as she was questioned:

“Is there something wrong?”

“N-no your majesty” said Dana as she shook her head.

Arthur knew she was lying.

“Come on Dana, I’m the king. You can be honest with me.”

Dana was doubtful about that, but she couldn’t be rude to him.

“Alright then” said she.

“So… are you not happy with the hospitality of the servants?”

“No my lord, I’m extremely happy with them” answered the girl.

“What about myself and Guinevere?”

“I like you both sire. You’ve been really kind to me” replied the girl sincerely.

“Then what’s the matter?” questioned the king.

Dana was a bit hesitant. She looked around the courtyard and then back at the man. Arthur waited patiently to hear what the girl had to say to him. Dana didn’t feel like telling him anything, but she had the urge to express how she was. She kept staring at him and she saw how tolerant he was being of her. His gentle smile was assuring her that he was a person to trust and that he would listen to her. Dana could not stand it anymore. She gave out a big sigh and answered:

“I have mixed feelings.”

“Oh yes…” affirmed Arthur. “And so tells me Guinevere.”

Dana sighed again in hesitation and said “Please don’t make fun of me when I say this my lord.”

“Alright, I won’t” promised Arthur.

Dana exhaled and her eyes looked a bit shaky. Her eyes started to shine like glass as she told the king what she was feeling.

“I’m confused.”

“What about?” asked the king.

“I… I don’t know if I’m developing feelings… for Merlin.”

‘WHAT?!’ Arthur thought as he widened his eyes in shock and his eyebrows hoisted. ‘Merlin?’ he wondered. He could not believe that the girl may have developed some feelings for his manservant. What was there to like about him?

“Merlin?” repeated the king.

“Yes… my lord.”

The king felt a bit awkward. He didn’t know how to answer the girl. He could see her hesitant expression and he felt bad. He shouldn’t be reacting as a shocked king, he should be happy for her and comforting her about it. Then, he chuckled a bit and said with an unsure voice:

“I’m sure he will like you too.”

“That’s the thing your majesty… I don’t want him to like me.”

Arthur could not believe his ears. What was the girl saying? If she likes Merlin then why did she just say that she didn’t want him to like her back? Arthur wanted to know the answer to those questions desperately.

”What do you mean?”

“My lord…”

“Call me Arthur” interrupted the king, irritated at the girl’s courtesy.

“Arthur…” said Dana.

Finally, she was calling him by his first name. He felt much more comfortable and let the girl continue talking.

“What I mean is that…” Dana hesitated. Then, she gave out a big groan and said “I don’t want it to develop into something deeper.”

“Mmm… something deeper…” he repeated.

“Yes Arthur” faltered the girl again. She was not used to calling the king by the first name, but she had to continue to tell the king her problem. “I don’t want to ruin my friendship with Merlin.”

Then, the king started to listen more carefully to the words the girl spoke.

“I just met him a few days ago… and he’s wonderful. It has been a long time since I had met anyone like Merlin. I can’t even explain how much I…” paused the girl. “But the I realize I shouldn’t, I-I’m not from this world.”

“That shouldn’t be a barrier” said Arthur with an attempt to comfort her.

“No sir, you don’t understand… It’s not just that. I had been hurt by love itself many times, and even more a few months ago before I came into Camelot.”

Arthur was a bit more interested in the girl’s story. He really had to know more about her.

“Why, what happened?”

“…I had been hurt by a man. He ridiculed me in a way that he could give me empty promises and every time I had a feeling, he would say that I’m paranoid. He did all of that because he knew I was not one that people would often love, and he knew I deserved it because I’m different. I’m not like everyone else.”

“That’s not true” blurted out Arthur.

“And love is a grand issue for me, Arthur. I don’t want to get hurt that way again… and much worse, I don’t ever want to hurt Merlin in any way, and I don’t want him to become a bad person because of me. He’s too astounding for that…”

Arthur nodded. He understood what the girl was saying.

“I understand that you don’t want to hurt either yourself or Merlin, but you have to eventually accept that if your feelings are true. I learnt that when I fell in love with Guinevere.”

“Arthur, I’m scared!” blurted out Dana.

Arthur was astounded by what the girl said. He raised his eyebrow and kept staring at her. He couldn’t understand what there was to be afraid of. If it was just a feeling, he was sure she would be able to handle it but it didn’t seem like she was. He couldn’t help but wonder what was there to be afraid of. As Arthur stood there looking at the girl, he could see her eyes staring to shed tears, which ran down her face like waterfall. He was helpless. He didn’t know whether he should comfort her or not. At the moment, all he could do was to stand there and listen to the girl.

“I had been taunted so many times, but not as bad as this man had done to me. He had broken his promise and so many times he called me a liar when my instincts were true.”

Arthur could not believe what he was hearing.

“When I had a bond with him, he would call me such things as a liar or obsessed, since I suspected him of foul infidelity, and even though I hadn’t seen him with a woman in that manner, I could sense it. He thought of me as a stupid woman who knew nothing. When my sister told me more information about his betrayal and that he insulted me behind my back my heart was deeply cut, even after I apologize for my own doubts. I couldn’t feel any honor within me, and so many things had taken that away. I-I don’t feel like I deserve any dignity at all, and I’ scared that Merlin would do that to me… but even worse, what I might do to him.”

Arthur nodded in full sympathy. He felt as if the final catapult had finally been thrown into full destruction, and all the things filled the gaps in his mind. He finally understood why the girl was scared, and why she had said that she didn’t want Merlin to like her back. Although he knew his manservant very well, he decided that he might keep an eye on her and Merlin just in case anything would happen between the two. Arthur felt sad for Dana about her experiences with love. He could tell by the girl’s expression that it would be a very humiliating incident. He wanted to talk no more of it, and so he sealed the conversation with a pat on her shoulder and a caring smile.

“Why don’t you wait until you are certain?” he asked. “I’m sure you will know if your feelings are true, and who knows, maybe his feelings for you are mutual.”

Dana nodded and obeyed. “Yes, Arthur.”

Arthur gave an understanding smile, patted her shoulder and said;

“Now, let’s talk about that no more” said the king. “I can see you’re hurt by past events, plus it seems to be something very painful to remember.”

Dana nodded and tears kept running down her cheeks. Then, Arthur looked up at the darkening sky and then back at Dana as he spoke:

“It’s getting late. I think you should go back to Gaius and Merlin.”

“Alright then” obeyed Dana. “I’ll see you in the morning sire.”

Arthur greeted her farewell for the day as he kept gazing at the walking girl with a concern stare. He couldn’t believe what he had heard from her. How could someone so kind have such horrible experiences from such a supposedly astonishing feeling? Arthur couldn’t think about that at the moment. It was getting a bit dark and he knew he had to go back to his wife. He knew that at the time he would arrive in the bedroom, he would be able to express to her his concern about his young guest. Arthur then walked out of the training yard and went inside the castle. He strolled in the corridors that would lead to his bedroom where Guinevere awaits him in loving patience. Then, he suddenly stopped. He looked around and then realized that it was dinner time and had invited the Doctor to have a feast with him, and he hoped to also have Dana and Cooper with them both. How could he have forgotten that? Arthur then turned the other way and ran towards the way where it would lead him to the feasting room.


End file.
